The World Ends With You
by lulang12300
Summary: Torn apart during high school and then unexpectedly reunited in college, secrets that were sworn to be buried forever come to light. Will it bring the once inseparable group of friends back together or tear them even further apart?
1. Chapter 1

**No, not based on the video game. I just liked the quote and the meaning behind it (which is the summary), and it relates to my idea of how this story will end up, so I used it. I love the game though. Anyway, a University AU! I love these! So this is going to take place in college (obviously) and I was wondering if I should make this one super long story (because its college and shit happens in college, like this story could go on forever) or should I make separate stories sort of like a series? I was thinking separate stories. Let me know!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **.**

Chapter 1: Awkward Reunions

Lucy groaned, pulling on her suitcase when it, once again, got stuck in the cracks on the sidewalk. "Natsu!" She whined, "Be a good boyfriend and carry my suitcase!" Natsu rolled his eyes, "Right, like I don't have my own to carry! Why are we dorming again?"

Lucy beamed at him, "I am finally getting away from my uncaring father." Erza shrugged, "Scholarship paid for it. Same applies to you Natsu." Natsu grudgingly wheeled his luggage and the huge bin containing his food inside. Erza and Lucy decided to mooch off of his bin and throw some of their food and other stuff in there as well. Of course, Natsu still had to take it upstairs.

"You guys know who your third roommate is yet?" Natsu asked as they made their way inside the building to the front desk. Erza shook her head, "No idea. We were told it was this girl named Sherry but she switched out last minute so now we have no idea." Lucy sighed, "I think Sherry went to our high school. She was so snotty and arrogant, thank God she was switched. I hope our new one isn't worse." Erza chuckled, "Lucy, you barely knew Sherry." Lucy just grinned at her friend and said nothing. Natsu and Erza put down their stuff and took a deep breath, tired from lugging all that around.

"You wait here Lucy," Erza said, "I'll get our room keys and try to find out who our third roommate is." Natsu went with Erza, getting his own as well, grumbling about not even knowing who his roommates were. Lucy rolled her eyes, leave it to Natsu to forget about having roommates until move in day.

Lucy was watching them as they waited on line when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and saw a familiar head of messy blue hair, "Levy! Oh my God, is that really you!?" Lucy threw her arms around her best friend, Levy McGarden. "Lulu, I've missed you so much! Emails are nothing compared to actually talking in person!"

"I can't believe you're actually here. Wait, didn't you and your family move to Alvarez after the whole... Gajeel thing?"

Levy's eyes saddened but she still retained a small smile, "Yeah, my family decided it would be best to leave here because they were afraid I was going through depression. They said I needed a fresh start. I told you, remember?" Lucy nodded, "Yeah, I was so bummed when you left!" Levy eyes became bright again, "I kept this a secret from you because I wanted to surprise you, but I made my parents promise that if we moved to Alvarez, I would only be finishing high school there and coming back for university! They agreed, and I came right back as soon as I graduated!"

"I'm not even surprised you knew to come here, considering how much we all talked about going to Magnolia University after high school." They turned and saw Natsu and Erza smiling at Levy. They hugged, welcoming the girl back home. Erza gave Lucy her key and held out another key to Levy, "How funny is it that we're roommates?" Lucy's jaw dropped as she stared at Levy, who beamed at her, "Surprise number two!" Lucy squealed and bounced around, not caring that other people were staring.

"This has to be the best day ever. I have my best friends and boyfriend all this in the same college. And we're roommates. I don't think anything can ruin this day!"

Natsu looked over Lucy's shoulder and frowned. "I would take that back, if I were you."

The girls turned and all frowned in unison. There stood a past friend, now complete stranger, Gray Fullbuster.

Gray saw their faces and chuckled, "I've miss you too?" Lucy snorted, turning away from the dark haired man, "What? Ran out of cocaine to snort?" Gray's features darkened and he took a threatening step towards Lucy, but Natsu stepped in front of her, daring Gray to make the first move. Gray stopped, then shook his head, "I guess I deserved that one didn't I?"

Lucy rolled her eyes, stepping around Natsu but lacing her fingers through his, "You deserve that, but from Juvia. But she's not here to tell you off so I'm just doing it for her."

Erza noticed him perk up slightly with the mention of his ex girlfriend's name, "So uh... how is Juvia?" Erza shrugged, "After her and Gajeel transferred back to Phantom High, no one has heard from them. Nobody knows why they left, we all just assumed you two had a nasty break up." Gray stayed silent. He knew the real reason but decided not to say anything. If Juvia didn't tell them, he wouldn't be the one too. Erza suspected it had something to do with Gray, but knew Juvia well enough to know that she wouldn't move away because of a break up. It just wasn't like her, she was too strong to let something so insignificant affect her so badly, even if it was with Gray.

"It's good to see you all again." Gray said, "Maybe it's fate trying to bring us together again." Natsu smiled, "There were a lot of good memories with our group, huh?" Lucy smiled, unable to stay mad, "Remember when Natsu accidently set Gray on fire with his lighter?" Levy laughed at the memory, "Or when Gray shoved a bunch of ice cubes down Natsu's shirt?" Erza laughed, "Which time?" They all burst out laughing at this, realizing they used to do that to each other on a regular basis.

"Those were good times, weren't they?" They all turned towards the new voice, shock written all over their faces. They saw a familiar blue haired man with a strange tattoo on his face.

"Jellal!" Lucy exclaimed. "You're out of juvie?" Natsu asked. Levy stared at him shock, not expecting him to go straight into the question everyone wanted to ask. Leave it to Natsu to be blunt. Jellal gave them all a small smile, trailing his gaze to Erza. She was blushing and staring at him in shock, her mouth opening and closing like she wanted to say something but couldn't find the words.

"They found out I was set up by someone so they let me go. Sucks how I lost three years of my life though." Jellal sighed, glancing at Gray. Gray saw this and bowed his head, wondering why Jellal wasn't saying the truth of who set him up. Erza sighed, but said nothing.

"Do you all remember that day three years ago" Lucy asked. Gray rolled his eyes as Natsu scoffed, "How could any of us forget? It was when everything went to shit and our group was torn apart." Gray shrugged, "That's the past." He pointed out, trying to change the subject, "Besides, look now. Except for Gajeel and Juvia, we're all together again."

They paused for a minute, wondering if it was going to be one of those moments where they just pop in after being talked about. The group looked around suspiciously, sighing in relief when they didn't see them. Lucy shrugged, "I guess they didn't come back here for college like you Levy."

Levy tried to hide her disappointment. She was furious at Gajeel for the way he left her, without rhyme or reason, but a part of her missed him. A part of her came back _for_ him. She wanted to make things right, find out the real reason for his parting. Even if they could never be in a relationship again, she at least wanted his friendship. She wanted Gajeel in her life again,

Gray, on the other hand, wasn't sure of his feelings. Was he bummed because he secretly missed Juvia and thought about her all the time? He wanted to apologize for so many things, especially for being a part of the reason her and Gajeel left Magnolia. He missed having a friend like Juvia. No, a girlfriend like Juvia. No other woman could compare to her. Gray sighed, aggravated that he sounded like a love sick teenager. But he was still a teenager, so it was okay, right? He shook his head, even if she never wanted to see his face again, he needed to apologize. If he could only apologize, that would ease the guilt that has been eating at his heart for three years.

Anyway!" Lucy perked up, trying to brighten the gloomy atmosphere, "Let's all go out for ice cream once we unpack! There's this little place called 8stone which has ice cream and milkshakes and stuff!" They all, except for Jellal and Gray, agreed and rushed towards the elevator, except for Erza. She nodded at Lucy who took off with the rest.

Erza gulped before turning towards Jellal, You should come too. Both of you." She added, glancing at Gray, "It'll be nice to catch up. And I'm sure we have lots to talk about." She stared at Jellal, a knowing glint in her eyes. Gray noticed it but said nothing. They both agreed and strode towards the elevator.

"We'll meet where we just where. Just go down when you finish unpacking."

Erza was the last one to show up, but everyone already suspected that would happen. The woman over packed every single time. One time they all went away for a weekend and she had an entire suitcase, while everyone else had a small duffel bag. A ridiculously large suitcase for three days!? The woman was insane and extremely high maintenance. Not like any of them would tell her that directly though.

"Why does 8stone sound so familiar?" Jellal asked as they were walking out of the dorm building and away from the college students trying to move in. Erza stepped a little closer to him, "We've been there a few times when it was all of us." Levy smiled at the memory, "That's where Gajeel and I had our first date." Lucy rubbed circles on her back, soothing her friend. Gray also added, "Juvia and I had our first kiss here." He smiled. It was silly, but it was one of the few memories he had left of her. Natsu grinned, "I always force Lucy to buy me ice cream from here!" Lucy just rolled her eyes and nudged him, but an amused smile formed on her lips. Jellal and Erza looked at each other, blushing. They had many dates here in the past but decided not to say anything. They didn't know what their current relationship was, if there was one.

They walked inside. seeing their friend Elfman Strauss behind the counter. "What's up MEN?" Elfman boomed, already preparing their usual. They were amazed at how he remembered after all this time. His older sister, Mirajane popped up from behind the counter, "You're all together again? Wow, I haven't seen that in a while." Mirajane had noticed that Gajeel and Juvia were missing but decided not to speak of it. She knew the events of that day three years ago.

Erza marched up to Mirajane and began talking excitedly. Mirajane talked about how her sister Lisanna was also attending the university while her and Elfman would be running the shop full time. Erza knew they didn't have much money and couldn't afford to go to college themselves, but they made sure Lisanna would be able too. Erza admired Mirajane and Elfman's sacrifices for their sister.

"So any of you got any jobs around here? I work at Fairy Tail! You know that coffee shop owned by the Dreyars? Luce and I are baristas." Natsu exclaimed. Erza nodded, "I work at Heart Kreuz! It's why almost all my clothes are from there." Lucy leaned towards Erza, "And mine too!" She winked, then turned to Levy, "Oh my God, we should all go shopping together. It'll be so fun!" Natsu and Gray rolled their eyes and turned to each other, "What about you?" Gray shrugged, "I haven't found a job yet." Natsu thought for a moment, "I think our place is hiring. You should check it out." Gray nodded before they both turned back to the girls. He was happy. He had done them wrong in the past and here they were, treating him as their friend. Sure, it was a bit more awkward as they were all getting used to seeing each other again, but Gray believed that things would really get better. All the bad moments of his past were gone and he could finally have a fresh start.

"Oh fuck no. This is exactly why I didn't want to come back to Magnolia. I fucking told you, Waterworks."

That deep, gruff voice. Waterworks?

They all froze, realizing exactly who it was that just spoke and who it was that person was talking too. Levy sighed, in all the books that she's read, it always happens like this. Unexpected and very awkward. Gray wanted to pull his hair out. Everything he had just said about his past not haunting him anymore was flushed down the toilet and he had no choice but to stare at the problem directly in the face.

Natsu, of course, was oblivious to the tension. "Gajeel! Juvia! I was wondering if we would see you guys!" He stood up and embraced Juvia and fist bumped Gajeel. Lucy, Jellal, and Erza also joined in, but Levy and Gray stayed at the table.

"When did you guys come back?" Lucy asked. Juvia shrugged, "Two months ago, Juvia believes. We didn't know if everyone was still... together. Besides we needed to settle so Juvia apologizes for not looking for you guys!" Erza waved off her worries, "It's not a big deal, really. Are you here for college or just a visit?"

"We're going to Magnolia U. Don't tell me-"

"Oh my God!" Lucy squealed, "So are we! I swear this is fate trying to bring us together!" Gajeel raised a studded brow, "All together? Does that mean-" Jellal sensed what he was going to say and titled his head in the direction of where Gray and Levy still sat, looking at their ice cream awkwardly. Juvia and Gajeel just looked at each other, Gajeel was screaming 'I told you so' with his eyes while Juvia looked at him apologetically.

"Anyway," Jellal cut in, "While we're all here, we might as well eat our ice cream together."

"We were just leaving." Gajeel growled, grunting when Juvia elbowed his rib. "We just walked in. Yes Jellal, we would love too." Juvia was lying, she wanted nothing more than to leave, especially with Gray there. "Only for a little while, Juvia has to go to work soon." Jellal raised a brow, "You work a night shift? So you take day classes?" Juvia laughed nervously, "A night shift? Yeah, you could say that." That confused Jellal even more but he decided to drop it.

As they all sat together, eating their ice cream, memories of that day three years ago began replaying in their mind. "So Juvia, Gajeel," Lucy started awkwardly, "You dorm?" Gajeel shook her head, "We share an apartment." Gray and Levy perked up. They live together? As in, one place? Surely they must have different bedrooms. "It's a one bedroom. All the two bedrooms were ridiculously expensive." Gray cleared his throat, "So you share a bed?" Juvia nodded, saying nothing. She twitched in annoyance, he finally speaks to her just to question if Gajeel and Juvia were sleeping together? Everyone knew their relationship was as platonic as it got.

They all sat in silence, eating their ice cream. They kept saying fate wanted them all together again, and finally, here they were. The group of friends that would never shut up, would always end up destroying something, and swore to never be torn apart now sat in silence. They were at a loss for words, even Natsu. They were physically together, but were far away in more ways than one. They should've known from the beginning. After that day three years ago, nothing would ever be the same between them.

 **.**

 **It's kind of dark, this story. I've never thought of something like this but when the idea hit me, I fell in love with it. I hope you guys do too. And don't worry, the personal drama between each of the characters later gets explained throughout the story. Duh, I can't put it all in one chapter! I bet you're shocked about Gray but it all gets explained as the story continues, trust me.**

 **I hope you all liked it and follow along this story with me. It's going to be a wild ride! Leave a review telling me what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is mainly going to be about Gajeel and Juvia since the last one was focused on the others. Think of these two chapters as the intro chapters and starting next one, classes start which means so does the drama. ;)**

 **.**

Chapter 2: Expand Your World

They had managed to make small conversation, but had eventually run out of things to talk about. Gajeel and Juvia felt like they were the reason for the tension and decided to leave. Juvia stretched, "I have to be at work in a few." Erza looked at her attire which was very... not Juvia. She was wearing a dark blue, off the shoulder corset with a pair of black jeans and black pumps. She only had a silver bracelet, necklace and earring as her jewelry. The lack of a hat was surprising.

"Where do you work again?"

"This little place, you've probably never been there before." She smiled sweetly, and Erza noticed how vague she was being. Jellal looked at his watch, "It's almost 8, you work now?" Juvia nodded and latched onto Gajeel's arm as he stood up, "Yup! So I've got to go before I'm late!" Before any of them could ask another question, they took off.

"Shady." Erza muttered. "It's really none of our business." Levy huffed, still mad over Gajeel and Juvia sharing a bed. "Oh Levy, you were quiet. You too, Gray." Gray looked down, "It was awkward." They all agreed. They were fine until Gajeel and Juvia showed up, but they didn't understand why. Gray did though, because they were directly affect by his actions three years ago, and Gajeel still hated him for it. He was sure Juvia didn't hate him, but she certainly didn't treat him like she did before.

Gray could only think of how he had been drooling over Juvia when she walked in. Gray had thought she was hot back in high school, but now she was downright sexy. The way her corset hugged her curves, her shapely ass and long legs in those jeans? And those heels made her legs look even longer, if that was possible. God, she was making his attempt to avoid her extremely difficult. At the moment, Gray only wanted to run after Juvia and rekindle their relationship, but his brain knew better.

"Well maybe," Natsu said, sipping his milkshake, "You and Levy not saying a word to them made them feel awkward, which then made us feel awkward." Lucy looked at her boyfriend in shock, surprised that he used his brain for once.

"It's been a while." Gray and Levy muttered. "Anyway, it's late, we should head back."

.

"You could've just told them we work at a bar and that we live in the apartment upstairs of it. We're broke college kids, it's nothing to be ashamed of." Gajeel pointed out to a very flustered Juvia. Juvia shook her head, "They wouldn't believe it. You're a security guard, that they would believe. But Juvia as a bartender? No way! Did you see the way Erza looked at my outfit? I'm sure they were all suspicious! Now Juvia has to dress like this all the time to make it look like I just changed my wardrobe over the years!" Juvia wailed. She didn't want any of them to know she was a bartender. Gajeel groaned, heading downstairs, "I don't get why but whatever. We have work to do."

As Gajeel stood outside, checking ID's, his mind wandered back to the petite blue haired girl. He hadn't realized how much he missed her until he saw her sitting there. Sure, he knew she was pissed at him, but what could he do? He wouldn't be able to tell her the real reason why he left without selling out Gray, and as much as he hated the guy, he would never ruin him like that. He could see that Gray was trying to rekindle his friendships with them, even if he was completely ignoring him and Juvia. 'Whatever.' Gajeel thought to himself as he allowed two girls who were barely wearing anything to go in. 'Better he stay away from Juvia so I don't have to bash his face in.' But Gajeel wanted to talk to Levy and he knew he owed her some kind of explanation. He sighed.

Why was life so complicated?

.

Juvia grinned as she racked in tips. She would easily clear 400 jewels tonight, maybe even more consider she was in the high 300's. She knew exactly why though. Tonight was a Thursday, meaning live performances and tonight, they were graced by the famous band Sabertooth. Juvia smiled as they performed. She was impressed they had gotten famous so quickly. They put up one of their songs online and it became a hit overnight. They were lucky, but they were talented. She heard the music stop but didn't really pay attention until she heard a familiar voice, "Anything with tequila in it." Juvia grinned, already having a drink in mind, "Juvia makes a pretty mean tequila sunrise." She had it made in seconds and handed over to her blonde friend, who just stared at her in shock. "That was... quick." Juvia giggled, "Do you see how crowded this place gets? Juvia needs to be quick! Hey Sting, Juvia has missed you."

"It's not crowded anymore." And he was right. Now that the performance was over and it was almost 4 A.M., the place was much more quieter. Now Gajeel was the one hard at work, kicking out all the drunk people that Juvia had long since cut off. She laughed at this and sat on a bar stool next to Sting.

"So how's the famous life?" She teased. Sting gave her a toothy grin, "If I'm being humble, not bad. But honestly, I fucking love it! God, Juvia, the thrill of performing onstage and the tours and everything! The fans? They're crazy but I love them. I'm always so busy now, I love it. When we were asked to perform here, I was doubting it but then I remembered the name of the bar from your texts and I had to agree. I have to see my favorite girl." He nudged playfully, winking at her. Juvia elbowed him lightly, "Oh please, if rumors are true, Juvia thinks Yukino is your favorite girl now." She winked at him, then turned to find Yukino, who was smiling at them, and waved. Sting blushed but said nothing, giving Juvia all the answer she needed.

"I really do miss you Juvia. I would say we need to chill more but we both know that'll barely happen." Sting said. Juvia looked to Sting's band mates, who were sitting on the stage talking, "Not all of us are in a famous band, Sting. Some of us have college to stress about." She said it teasingly, but noticed a frown set on his face. "Magnolia U, right? Doesn't... _he_ go there?"

"Gajeel? Yes he does, in fact-"

"That's not who I meant and you know it."

Juvia sighed, knowing exactly who he meant. Sting and Juvia had been very close when they were younger, attending the same school until Gajeel and Juvia transferred to Magnolia. Sting transferred as well, but to a completely different high school in a completely different town, where he met his band mates, and wasn't at Oak Town High when they made their return. Juvia and Sting did keep in touch though, and remained close despite their distance. She saw Sting the same way she saw Gajeel, a brother and best friend. And since they were so close, he was well informed of the events of three years ago and wanted to chop off Gray's arm and beat him with it.

"I'm mad that he almost messed up Gajeel again but I'm more pissed that you finally ditched him but had to make it seem like he dumped you."

Juvia sighed, "Juvia knows. But Juvia knows if she tells the truth, everyone will want to know why and Juvia doesn't want to expose Gajeel like that. She is okay with letting people think Gray broke up with her. But she does want to speak with him. Not to get back together, but just to become friends again. I want to know why he let it happen. Why didn't he stop Ultear and why did he let it go on as far as it did? Addicted to cocaine? Gray doesn't seem like the type. I know there is some hidden truth but I just don't know what." Sting sighed, "It's in the past now. You really want to reopen old wounds?"

Juvia shook her head, "Juvia doesn't know, Sting. Juvia doesn't know what to do. Maybe coming back to Magnolia was a bad idea. She should have stayed in Oak Town and went to a more local college."

Sting shook his head, "Do you remember what I told you? All those years ago when you first moved to Magnolia and then when I told it to you again when you decided to come back." Juvia had to think for a moment but then nodded, "Yes, and I thought it was silly. Why?" Sting shrugged but gave her a knowing smile, "Well, maybe that's why you came back. To expand your world and broaden your horizons. Maybe you left too soon and fate found a way to bring you back here."

"But why? What could Juvia possibly still have here?"

"How should I know? Figure it out for yourself!"

Juvia rolled her eyes and lightly punched Sting's shoulders. They dropped the subject, wanting to enjoy the few hours they had left before Sabertooth had to leave. There would be time for thinking later.

.

Juvia hopped into the shower as soon as she stepped into the apartment. She smelled of hard liquor and berries and wanted nothing more than to wash the stench off. She slipped on a pair of shorts that ended mid thigh and a sports bra. Her modesty went down the drain when it was just her and Gajeel and neither of them really cared. His did as well, seeing how he came out the shower in only a pair of boxers and didn't make any effort to find something else.

"Gajeel." Juvia said seriously. He turned to her, unsure why she was so serious and why it was making him nervous. "The world ends with you."

"...What?"

"The world ends with you." She repeated, as if she didn't just say this out of nowhere, "If you want to enjoy life, you need to expand your world. You got to push your horizons out as far as they'll go."

"...What the fuck?"

"Sting told me that a long time ago. It was after the break up with Bora and he suggested that I move away to 'expand my world'. Of course, you wouldn't let me go alone and Sting couldn't come with because he and his family were already planning to move away shortly after. Then he said it again when I was trying to figure out where to go to college. That kind of inspired me to come back here. Of course, I was dragging you with me."

"Which is the reason why we have barely any money to our name. Where are you going with this?"

Juvia sighed, "We can't just close ourselves off because of the past. We need to confront our demons. Mine has black hair and yours has blue, and say what we've been wanting to for years. We've held back because it was in the past but you know what? Forget that! We deserve to show how we truly feel and nothing is going to stop me this time. I demand answers!"

Gajeel just looked at her, "That's the difference between you and I. You'll be getting answers. I'll have to give them."

"Yes, but you'll have Levy again. Expanding your world also means allowing other people in. You let Juvia in."

"That's not even the same thing. You've always been there."

"And Levy wants to be there, she's just waiting for your invitation." Gajeel groaned, not being able to think of a good retort, so he settled for the first thing he thought of.

"Your quote is stupid." Very mature Gajeel, very mature.

Juvia stuck her tongue out, knowing she had won. Gajeel just plopped down on the bed, waiting for Juvia to turn the light off so he could finally go to sleep. It was a long day and he was very tired.

"Just think about it okay?" Juvia whispered. Gajeel glanced to her side of the bed to see her back facing him. He rolled his eyes, "Yeah, whatever I guess." He made it seem like he didn't care, but he did. In fact, that quote was all he could think about now. That, and a certain blue haired girl. And no, not Juvia.

 _"Expand your world."_

But could he? He had been closed off for three years now, confiding in Juvia and Juvia only.

 _"Push your horizons out as far as they'll go."_

Opening up to people? Why did that thought seem so scary? He was a tough guy, nobody would want to open up to him anyway. Only two people really knew him behind his tough shell, Juvia and Levy.

 _Levy._

He really did miss her, sometimes so much that it hurt. Not that he'd ever say it out loud. Not that he needed too. Gajeel knew that Juvia knew, which he was sure also played a part in her decision to come back to Magnolia. He was positive that she would have liked to never see Gray again, but she wanted to come back so Gajeel could have the chance to talk to Levy again. To fix things. She would never say it out loud and neither would he, but he knew and would never be able to thank her enough. This had to be hard for her, seeing Gray must have brought back forgotten feelings.

 _"The World Ends With You."_

No matter when his world was going to end, he wanted to make sure he lived it with no regrets.

 **.**

 **It's so weird, I usually make it to ten pages or higher. This time it was 9. That quote will be repeated A LOT because well, it's the title of the story (lol) and because the quote relates.**

 **You might be wondering why two eighteen year olds are working at a bar. Don't worry, when the others find out (spoiler alert?), Juvia will explain.**

 **Yes, I love Sting and Juvia almost as much as I love Gray and Juvia HOWEVER, this will not be a love triangle. Most likely, this is going to be the only time he physically appears in this story. (He might appear in text messages or something idk)**

 **Hope you liked it! See you in the next one :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Have any of you every played Drakengard 3? That final boss was shit but the entire game's OST? AMAZING. Listening to it while writing this and just imagining myself as Zero. Ah, if only life could be a videogame.**

 **.**

Chapter 3: What did Monday do to you?

Monday. The worst day of the week. People were hung over from their eventful Sunday nights, some were dreading the work shift they had after their classes, and some were just hateful of the fact that once again, the torture of a long week was repeating itself.

Gray sighed and blew some of his spikes out of his eyes as the professor droned on about some math problem. Honestly, the idea of math was ridiculous. Solving problems? Gray had his own problems to worry about! Math needed to learn how to solve its own fucking problems! He looked over to his side and saw Natsu doodling on the corner of his paper. Was that a picture of him breathing fire? Of course it was, the kid was a fucking pyromaniac. Gray betted if Natsu could have any wish of his granted, it would be to have fire powers.

"I bet in some alternate universe, I have the ability to breath fire. How cool would that be?" Gray rolled his eyes as Natsu daydreamed. "Yes and in that same world, I have the power to make anything I desire out of, I don't know, ice. Dream on."

Gray looked down at the paper in front of him. The question was something about if a kid stood in front of a pole with the sun shining in the opposite direction, how tall would his shadow be. Wait... what?

Gray groaned, "I'm going to fail." He looked over to see Natsu still day dreaming. The kid was a math genius if only he would only pay attention. His spelling though? Atrocious.

With nothing to do, he let his mind wander. Things between his friends had began to settle back to the old ways. It seemed Natsu still treated him the same. _"The past is the past. As long as you don't go back to that, we're good.",_ he had said. Although neither would admit it out loud, they were best friends. Everyone knew it, even them, but they still acted like they hated each other. Best rivals, that was a good word for it. Lucy was slowly starting to open up to Gray, seeing how Natsu was around him. Gray wanted to say the same for Erza, but he knew Erza was still mad at him for being half of the reason she was forced to be separated from Jellal for three years. He expected Jellal to hate his guts but for some reason, he was nice to him. They were more acquaintances than friends, but it had been like that in high school as well. Gray made it a note to talk to him and see what his deal was. He shouldn't be so nice to Gray, considering he was part of the reason he ended up in juvie.

Then there was Levy. He and Levy were friends back in high school, but now, he would tell she was keeping sort of a distance. Gray knew she hated Gajeel and felt bad because Levy hated him over a lie he partially created, but he suspected that Levy knew he had something to do with it. Gray wanted to come clean to Levy, as well as Jellal, even the rest of their friends, but couldn't bring himself too. What if they hated him again? He came back for a new start, to make things right, and to settle the demons of his past. It was Ultear's wish for him and he sure as hell wouldn't disappoint her. But that meant confronting...

Juvia. He loved her. He knew he loved her. He also knew she probably hated his guts after what he did. But if only he could explain. Yes, he knew he was in wrong but he was sorry! Wasn't that enough? No, because sorry is just a word. He would need to prove it. That is, if Gajeel didn't pulverize him first. If Juvia hated him, Gajeel most certainly wanted to kill him. And knowing the guy, he probably would too.

"Gray." He turned to Natsu, "Stop letting old news bother you."

"It's Juvia. I want to make things right with her." Natsu shrugged, "Well, I mean, I don't know what to tell you. You broke up with her right? Apologize and see if she's willing to take you back." Natsu said simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Gray wanted to pull his hair out. It wasn't that simple! It was much more complicated but of course Natsu wouldn't know that, he didn't even know the full truth. Nobody did except Juvia, Gajeel, Ultear and himself. And he couldn't exactly go to Ultear now, considering she was in prison! Unless...

Would Jellal know? Maybe that's why he was so nice. Because he knew how fucked up Gray was and pitied him. Maybe Gray would talk to him. But if he ended up not knowing, that would put Gray in a potentially awkward situation.

He ran his hands through his hair and groaned in frustration, "Fuck. Mondays."

"What did Monday do to you?"

.

Levy sat in her classroom, skimming through a book but not really reading the pages. She had another twenty minutes before her class started so she was just sitting there, drowning in her own thoughts.

She wanted to kill Gajeel. She wanted to climb up on his body so she could chop his precious hair off. But then a part also wanted to climb up on Gajeel and kiss him senseless. Levy sighed, it had been three years and she was still in love with him. Was it because she never had any closure? He just took off and left after all, without even a text goodbye. What if he decided not to go to college? Would she have never seen him again? Why did he even decide to go here? So many questions and not a single answer.

She just wanted to talk to him. Sure, she completely ignored him at the ice cream parlor, but that was different. She wanted to talk to him alone, with none of the others around. But what if he avoided her? This was college after all and the campus was huge, it would be a miracle if she just happened to bump into him.

"Fate just loves to fuck me over, doesn't it?" Levy froze, not even having to look up to know who that gruff, deep voice belonged to. Guess she wouldn't have to worry about finding him after all. She heard a deep sigh and a notebook being dropped onto the desk next to her.

"Hope you don't mind me sitting next to you, Shrimp."

She shook her head with a small smile, hating the nickname before but now doing a little happy dance in her head over it. "Not at all, Gajeel."

.

Erza sighed as she sat in Psychology, eagerly glancing at the door every time someone walked in. There was a slim chance a certain blue haired man had this psychology class out of the eleven offered this semester, but even she could hope. Jellal had always talk about wanting to major in psychology after high school so hoping he still stuck with that, she decided to take a psychology class, hoping he did the same. No, she wasn't the type of girl to waste her money on class she didn't need for a guy. Erza shuddered, she wasn't that girl. She needed this class regardless for the general requirements, she just happened to want to take it now.

The door opened again and she sat up. Her eyes bugged out for a second so she quickly looked down, not wanting Jellal to see her face so red. She was flustered, a feeling only Jellal could bring out of her. She missed his eyes lock on her figure and smirk.

"May I sit here?" Erza cursed herself for not being able to find her voice so she nodded instead. He chuckled and sat down, "I'm glad I have this class with you. I was afraid of not knowing anyone and getting bored." Erza smiled at him, red faced and all, "Well, you would make friends quickly."

"I wouldn't say that. I was always only close to one person." Erza's smile got wider, knowing exactly who he was talking about, "Oh? Who?" She asked, playing dumb.

Jellal said nothing, wrapping an arm around her as she laid her head on his shoulder. "I've missed you Erza Scarlet."

.

Gajeel stood up, towering over Levy as usual. But as tall as he was, he swore Levy could be more intimidating than he could ever be. Like now for instance, all Gajeel wanted to do was run back to his apartment and hide from this petite monster, not like he would tell her that though.

"Sorry, what was the question?" He asked, hoping she wouldn't want to repeat herself and drop it.

"I asked you why you left three years ago." Gajeel sighed, he should have know that wouldn't work. Gajeel gulped and looked at the time. Then he remembered, "My class is in ten minutes and it's all the way on the other side of the campus so-"

"Stop running Gajeel." Levy whispered, "You're only hurting me more and more." She wouldn't cry. Not in a classroom and most certainly not in front of Gajeel. She was stronger than that. Gajeel saw it though, the little tear in the corner of her eye that threatened to fall. It broke him on the inside to see that she was upset, especially because he was the one causing it.

"I'm sorry."

"For?"

"Everything. Listen, I'm not running, but I really do have to get to class. One day, when we're both free, I'll tell you everything. I'm back now and I'm going to make things right. I promise."

Levy finally looked at him with a small smile, "You promise?"

Gajeel smirked at her, happy to see that beautiful smile that made his heart do flips, "You bet. The world ends with you, after all" He wanted to slap himself when he saw Levy's confusion. 'Stupid Juvia for getting that quote stuck in my head.'

"Ah, never mind. Anyway, see you." Way to ruin a good moment, Gajeel.

.

"So you have a class now?" Erza asked, hoping he would say yes. Jellal shook his head, "Psych is my last for the day. I have work though. Do you have a class?" Erza nodded, disappointment evident on her face, "Until 6:20." She sighed, "Where do you work?

"8Island. You know that little cafe? I'm there until closing, so about ten. You should stop by after class." Jellal offered, hoping he didn't sound too hopeful. To his relief, Erza smiled and nodded, "After my last class, I would love too." Jellal was about to say goodbye when he saw hesitation on her face. He could tell she wanted to say something.

"Spill it Erza."

She opened her mouth to speak but then closed it. "Ah, it's nothing." One hard look from Jellal got her talking, though. "I just have something I want to ask you but you have work and I have class so it can wait. When I come to 8Island, I'll ask." Jellal eyed her with suspicion, but accepted this. He knew Erza couldn't keep a secret, especially from him.

Besides, he had a feeling he knew what she wanted to ask him about.

.

Juvia loved being on time. She never liked to keep people waiting and if there was a set time, she would be there on the dot, sometimes even early. As much as she loved being on time, she loved being early more. It showed dedication in her eyes, that you want to be there. It also made for a great first impression. However, right now, Juvia dreaded that she was early. There was still thirty minutes until class started and she was the first one in the room.

It wouldn't be too bad though. She knew she had this class with Gajeel. It would be even more fun because Juvia knew Gajeel was awful at math so seeing him curse out every problem he would be given was something to look forward too.

"You should be begging me forgiveness for making me show up this early for a class." She smiled as she looked up, "Juvia never asked Gajeel to come early." Gajeel scoffed, "But I know of your annoying habit to be early for everything, which forces me to be early for everything. Besides, you looked like you were having so much fun sitting by yourself."

Juvia rolled her eyes but motioned Gajeel to come sit next to her.

"So Shrimp is in my English class." Juvia smiled at the familiar nickname he used for Levy, "And? How was it?"

Gajeel shrugged nonchalantly, but Juvia could see the faint hint of blush, "It was whatever." One glare from Juvia got him talking, "She demanded answers. She really wants to know why we left. Or at least, why I left her without an explanation."

Juvia sighed, "Juvia told you to tell her before we left." Gajeel shook his head, "I was too much of a coward. I couldn't face her. Besides, if she found out why we left, she'd probably lose all respect for me and think I'm pathetic."

Juvia smiled at him, "Juvia doesn't think so. If anything , she'd probably just end up hating Gray and Ultear for trying to drag you back to your old ways. I knew as soon as Ultear found out about your past, she would come after you. I just thought-" Juvia's voice cracked so she paused for a bit, but Gajeel already knew what she was going to say.

"Gray would stop her?"

"That's why I also wanted to leave. Not just to get you the hell away from that bitch, but because I just couldn't look at Gray the same way anymore. That's also why I broke up with him."

Gajeel slammed his fist onto the desk, "Which was my favorite part of leaving, by the way. Except rumors spread that he broke up with you and that's what everyone believed. You were so in love with the guy, no one would believe that you ended things. And he didn't even try to deny it, the fucking prick-"

"It's the past now." Juvia states simply, seeing other students begin to make their way inside the classroom, "Besides, people would have asked to many questions if they found out who broke up with who. It was better they believed that instead."

Gajeel rolled his eyes, "I still want to kill him. I think I'm going to kill him."

"Gajeel no, you'll end up in jail."

"It'll be worth it."

.

"So you're liking it here Gray?" Lucy asked as she prepared a caramel frappe. Gray nodded eagerly, "I am. I need to thank Natsu for telling me about this opening." Lucy looked at him in pretend shock, "Wait. You just said you want to THANK him? Not KILL him? Oh my God, I wish I got that on video!" She exclaimed in fake excitement.

Gray chuckled. He took another customers order and started to make it, glancing at Lucy every so often. He started his shift first, then she came in a few hours later. He wanted to ask him how she felt around him. He knew now that Natsu didn't hate him or hold any type of grudge, and while Lucy didn't act like she did, he couldn't be too sure. He was a dick in the past, turning on his friends for Ultear. Sure, she was his sister, but they were his best friends. They were his family too, even if not biologically. Especially when they found out the reason? God, Gray couldn't begin to imagine how hated he was. He didn't blame them though.

"Gray, if you don't stop staring at me, I'm going to get freaked out and tell Natsu."

Gray rolled his eyes, deciding to get straight to the point. "Be honest Lucy, do you still hate me?"

Lucy's eyes trailed over his shoulder, "I don't, but I think that customer over there will if you don't give him his caramel frappe. " Gray looked at the drink still in his hand and cursed, shoving to the other guy, apologizing. Thankfully, it was a nice old man who didn't mind waiting. "Thanks. Now answer."

Lucy sighed, "Honestly Gray, I never hated you. I was hurt, yes, but never hated you. But I'm not as forgiving as Natsu is. Juvia was a close friend of mine, and although I knew you first, I can't just ignore how you hurt her. "

"She always called you love rival."

Lucy giggled, "Yeah at first. After you two actually got together, it became more of an inside joke that she said for fun."

Gray shrugged, "Okay, I'm an ass for that. trust me, I think about it all the time and plan to make things right." 'Hopefully' "Anyway, I'm asking about you right now. I'm trying to make my round of apologies to everyone."

Lucy wanted to scoff and tell him that Juvia should've been the first one he apologized to. "I don't know how to see you right now. You were Gray Fullbuster, one of best friends. You became Gray Fullbuster, cocaine addict. Now you're Gray Fullbuster, college student trying to make amends and start fresh. I don't want to judge you based on your past-"

"You have every right too."

"Maybe I do, but I don't want too. You're starting over, and me judging you makes me the bad guy. I want to believe you're doing a good thing Gray, but I need to see it with my own eyes. I need to see that you won't bail or go back to your old ways. And now, with Juvia here, you're really going to be put to the test. I guess I'll make my decision based on how you act. But trust me Gray, I don't hate you." Gray nodded, unable to express how thankful he was for that.

"I was an ass of an friend. I'm going to make things right. And with Juvia, I just need time. You know how I am with words. I don't want to make a fool of myself."

Lucy laughed as she took another order, "Come on Gray, its Juvia. She can be upset with you, but we all know she can never hate you."

Gray just smiled at her as he prepared another drink. Lucy didn't know the full truth. She didn't know why they broke up. She only knew the story Gray told them, which was far from the truth. He hated lying to his friends and he hated keeping up that same lie after all these years, but he didn't know what else to do. He was afraid of coming clean, afraid that it would destroy his attempt at a fresh start. Lucy was very wrong about one thing, however.

Juvia despised him.

.

Erza wasn't sure how long she stood in front of 8Island's front door. She was contemplating running away before Jellal noticed she was there. It was almost closing so she was sure he was now cleaning up before closing time. Maybe this was a bad time. Maybe she should come back another day. Well, in her defense, she had gotten there on time. In fact, she had gotten there two hours before but had just stood outside. Only Jellal could make her feel like such a nervous wreck.

She looked up, and to her horror, saw Jellal staring. Directly. At her!

She squared her shoulders and strode in, almost melting at his warm smile, "I- I'm sorry I'm late." Lies.

Jellal shrugged, "It's fine. It was busy here anyway. I could make you a cup of coffee if you like?" He hoped the relief wasn't too obvious. He had been eagerly looking at the door all day hoping to see his scarlet beauty, and was beginning to think she wouldn't show. Erza shook her head, although caffeine did sound nice. "Are you about to leave? We could talk on the way."

Jellal nodded, heading to the back room for a moment, and reappeared with his jacket in hand. "You're okay with walking? I usually don't bring my car." Erza nodded. Walking meant more talking. That was a good thing.

"You know already don't you? What I want to ask, I mean." Erza asked as Jellal locked up the cafe. He sighed as he put the keys away and resumed walking, "Is this about three years ago? I came back to move on from the past Erza."

Erza waved her hands furiously, "I know! Trust me, I know! It's just I need to know why. I knew you would never even touch cocaine so when you were being sent to juvie for possession of it, I knew something was wrong. We both know it was Ultear! She framed you and I spent two months searching for any type of evidence that would prove that. Then I finally found it and you told me to drop it? It's been eating me up ever sine Jellal. I need to know why."

"Honestly, I don't know why. Maybe I thought me serving her time would help her realize that she needed to stop. And it did."

"But three years Jellal. You lost three years of your life over a crime you didn't commit." Jellal sighed, "Yes well, it was either me or Ultear and Gray. Remember when you told me that you found the evidence that could set me free? You also told me that Juvia and Gajeel left, as well as Ultear and Gray. I knew the guilt Ultear felt because of her actions caused her to leave. Call it intuition, but I just knew. And see? I was right."

Erza scoffed, "You just got lucky and you know it." Jellal shrugged. "I'm a psychology major. I know what I'm talking about." This made Erza laugh, so she punched his shoulder lightly, "Whatever!" Jellal also laughed and smiled at the sky, "Anyway Erza, that's the past now. Ultear is paying for her crime now. She has so many years that by the time she gets out, she'll be an old woman."

Erza wanted to be rude and say she deserved it, but a part of her felt bad for Ultear. "Jellal, please don't leave again. I... really missed you." She whispered as she moved a little closer to him.

"I missed you too. I don't plan on leaving anytime soon." Jellal whispered back, wrapping an arm around her. There was one other question, a more personal one, haunting Erza's brain but she decided that it could wait for another day.

 **.**

 **I have an entire document dedicated to their major, work schedule, and class schedule. It took me two hours to get it together! If that's not dedication then I don't know what is. *Insert crying laughing emoji***

 **Guys I really hope you're loving it because I am. I know you probably just want to know what happened three years ago but I want it to be explained slowly. It was a sad day that tore the group apart and I don't want to just rush it in one chapter. As they all begin to open up to each other again, more and more gets explained. And hope you like long chapters because this made fourteen pages, and considering each chapter is a full day for each of them (like switching POV), chapters might be around this length. Chapter 1 and 2 was Thursday, and this one was Monday.**

 **There will be Jerza because I LOVE Jerza and there will be slight Nalu. I'm not going to promise a whole bunch of it because this site has enough Nalu (though I love the pairing), but there will definitely be some.**

 **That's all for now folks! See you in the next one. Tell me what you thought! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**I know I uploaded this chapter before but as I was reading through it again to start the next one, there was some mistakes and some parts that I just didn't like or wanted to add on, so I rewrote it and uploaded it again. I'm going to update this after finals so very soon! Like the last week of May?**

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Chapter 4: Panther Lilly

Juvia had a fear she never told anyone, not even Gajeel. She wasn't afraid that he would make fun of her for it, because even if he did, he would never mean it. It was because she knew how overprotective Gajeel was and would plan his class and work schedule around her even if it was inconvenient for him or even skip a class if it meant protecting her from what she feared the most.

Loneliness.

Juvia wasn't afraid of the dark so this was a fear that no one would ever guess about her, considering how strong she acted and how independent she had become. But deep down, being alone ate at her soul and she would want to roll up in a ball and cry. But she wouldn't, because she was Juvia Lockser and Juvia Lockser doesn't cry.

She looked around the apartment, seeing it completely empty, just as it was when she looked around two minutes ago. Her schedule was perfect, only having classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Except now, sitting in her lonely and empty apartment, she dreaded it. She missed Gajeel's company. She wasn't even supposed to be home right now. At this time, she would be working in the little cafe 8Island and wouldn't be home until three in the afternoon. However last night, her boss had called her and said he was celebrating some kind of holiday and the cafe was closed for the day. While any other person would be celebrating, Juvia was devastated. No work meant being alone in this empty apartment.

Juvia sighed, stretching her body, "Maybe Gajeel and Juvia should get a cat. A black one, because Gajeel would want a black one. Juvia shall name it then. Maybe... Lilly?" She clapped her hands in excitement and texted Gajeel that she was going to go buy a cat.

Juvia was impulsive. Gajeel learned to deal with it.

Her phone buzzed as she was getting ready to head out. The cat was not the only reason although she was using it as a cover. She just needed to get out of here and be around people.

 _'Don't forget we're broke'_

Juvia giggled and quickly texted back. ' _We'll be fine. Naming it Lilly.'_ Having a cat would also make her feel less lonely. Their different schedules meant they would be home at different times, meaning the cat wouldn't be alone for too long and would definitely be fed at reasonable hours.

 _'I want a boy cat. Black. Lilly is too girly.'_ Juvia giggled, quickly typing a response, _'Juvia knows. But Lilly is staying. Find a way to make it boyish'_ She could almost hear Gajeel groan and smirked, already knowing his reaction, _'You're killing me here'_ Juvia smiled triumphantly, knowing she had won. Juvia couldn't believe herself as she entered the pet shop. She didn't think she was actually going to go through with it.

She strode along the aisles full of animals, stopping every time a dog yelped at her or smiled at her. She practically melted when one dog had placed its paw on the glass so she mimicked its actions and placed her hand on the same spot. She was close to tears, wanting to buy every animal in this store.

'Cats!' Juvia screamed internally, 'You are here for cats!'

She looked at all the cats, seeing a blue one, which was an odd sight but immediately thought of a person who loved odd things. She quickly took a picture and sent it to Lucy, texting _'Good for Natsu?'_ His birthday was coming up after all and it would be perfect for Lucy to get for him. Moments later, her phone buzzed, _'I love. Send me the address, I'll go after class.'_ Juvia smiled, thinking to herself that she was such a great friend. She did as her friend asked and then promptly put her phone away. She was here on a mission! No more distractions!

An hour after ogling the other animals, she stopped at one of the last few cages. There lay a black cat with a scar on its left eye. It looked lazily at her, before closing its eyes to resume its nap. Although it was clearly uninterested, Juvia knew this was the one. It's red eyes matched Gajeel's and she knew he would love it.

"Impulse shopping is the best shopping. You are coming home with Juvia!"

.

"Fuckin' Juvia." Gajeel groaned, trying to think of a way to make Lilly boyish. It was impossible. It was the name of a flower! How was he supposed to make a flower boyish?

"Did you just say you're fucking Juvia!?" He heard a guy exclaim, so he looked up, ready to pulverize whoever was talking about the girl who was practically his sister. Except the guy asking the question was directly in front of him... looking at him. Gajeel rolled his eyes, knowing who it was just from the hair.

"Why are you obsessed with the idea of us sleeping together?" Gajeel asked. It wasn't a yes or no to his question, which he knew would irritate Gray. Of course, Gajeel would never even think of Juvia like that, but he wouldn't pass up the opportunity to get under Gray's skin.

"Answer my fucking question Redfox." Seeing Gray seething brought Gajeel joy.

"I don't fucking need too, Fullbuster. You want to stop acting like a fucking five year old and quit making a scene?" As if that brought Gray out of some kind of daze, he looked around and saw several classmates looking at him. Feeling a bit embarrassed but not wanting Gajeel to see that, he rolled his eyes and sat a seat away from Gajeel.

"I thought you two were like brother and sister."

"And I thought you didn't give a fuck about her."

Gray looked perplexed, wondering how Gajeel could say that with a straight face, "How could you say that?" Gajeel shrugged, "You broke up with her then took off and left, didn't you?" Gray frowned, "That's not the truth and you of all people should know that."

Gajeel chuckled, "Well, I am speaking the truth. Just not about you." Gray's frowned deepened, "Yeah. Everything you said is what Juvia did. She broke up with me and then you two took off." Gray didn't need to ask why she did that. He already knew. "And you let people believe you broke up with her. By the way, I want to rip off your arm and beat you with it." Gray chuckled, not surprised and knew he deserved it. "I was ashamed. I wasn't ashamed of what Ultear and I were doing until Juvia left me for it. And I didn't want other people to know we were addicts so I let people believe that because then they would've asked too many questions." Gajeel leaned back in his seat, remembering that those were Juvia's exact words as well.

"Whatever. Doesn't change the fact that I despise everything about you."

"I don't blame you. I hated myself too. Still kind of do. I was an ass in the past. I did all of you, especially Juvia so wrong. I'm not surprised she left me with how I treated her and you know... the thing with you too."

Gajeel nodded, "She really doesn't like you too much anymore." Gray visibly winced, trying to imagine Juvia hating him. He hated the thought. "I was really hoping I had at least one class with her but the way my schedule has been, I honestly doubt it. Maybe I could visit her at work?"

Gajeel tensed, not wanting to expose their secret of working at Phantom. Juvia was hell bent on keeping it a secret, and although he didn't understand why, he wasn't about to betray her. On the other hand, there was her job at 8Island, but he wasn't sure if he should tell Gray about it. Gajeel glanced at him and seeing how broken he looked, took pity.

"She works at 8Island. I'm not telling you when so you'll have to figure it out on your own." Gajeel huffed, not wanting to disclose this information but seeing the gloomy cloud over Gray's head disappear made him feel better about it. "That's fine. Thank you so much!" Gray exclaimed, hope shining in his eyes. Gray wanted to hug the guy but he wouldn't.

"I know she probably won't take me back but I want to make things right. I will make things right. So... I should start with you. I'm apologizing for myself and Ultear. We shouldn't have tried to get you back on cocaine with us especially after learning about your past with it back in Oak Town. You were addicted back then and trying to stay clean and we knew that, so we tried to take advantage of you, hoping you would crack. It was wrong, as a friend and just as a person. I'm sorry."

Gajeel appreciated the apology but decided to play it cool. He shrugged, "No big deal. Besides if I did it with you guys, Juvia would've beat my ass. No thanks to that." Gray chuckled, knowing how Juvia was when she was angry and agreeing with Gajeel's fear of it.

"I doubt Juvia will be as forgiving though." Gray shrugged, "I don't expect her to be. I fucked up."

Gajeel nodded, deciding not to respond, so they both turned to the professor who was droning on about something with social behaviors. This stuff was basic psychology, which was practically common sense. Gajeel rolled his eyes and thought about what Gray said.

He wanted to apologize, and Gajeel knew that damn well that he should be. But there was something Gajeel was keeping on behalf of Juvia. Something that she also did wrong, something that she kept from Gray. Gajeel wasn't the only reason she decided to pack up and leave Magnolia with him. Not like he would tell Gray, that was her responsibility.

He knew that if Gray found out, all hell would break loose.

.

Erza hated retail. In fact, she hated retail so much she planned on quitting two weeks after she got the job. Except she was broke, she had tuition to pay, she absolutely loved the clothes, and because she was broke. Oh right, and she was broke.

She sighed, refolding the same stack of clothes she folded twenty minutes ago because some customers were just barbaric animals. Seriously, was it necessary to mess up all of the neatly stacked clothes to get the one for your size? You couldn't just look at the tag, find your size, then gently pick up the pile to get it?

"Welcome to Heart Kreuz, how may I help you?" She asked sweetly, although all she wanted to was storm out. "Yeah, can I get a shirt?" Erza blinked, waiting for the women to continue. Realizing that she stopped there, she quickly ushered the woman to the shirt section, which was directly to their right. Honestly, how did the woman miss it? "Well we have plenty of shirt selections right over here." Fucking dumbass.

"But like a specific shirt." Erza wanted to roll her eyes, "Anything in mind?"  
"Um, no not really."

Erza just stared at the woman, wanting to punch her in the face. And she probably would have if she wouldn't get fired for it, "Well, my name is Erza and if you need anything let me know." She stated, quickly turning and getting as far away from her as possible. When she was a far enough distance, she turned around and saw the woman making a mess of the entire section. "Just great," Erza groaned, "More work for me."

"Wouldn't know what it's like." She brightened up at the deep voice, recognizing it immediately, "I work at a restaurant. Customers can get pretty bitchy though. Tips sometimes suck." Erza grinned, turning around and wrapping her arms around him. "I've missed you." She whispered before she could stop herself. She almost wanted to run away when she felt Jellal get tense, but her fears vanished when he wrapped his arms around her waist. "I've missed you too Erza."

Erza backed away from the embrace, wanting to say something but not sure how to get the words out. Jellal just smiled at her, knowing she had something to say. He took her hand in his and gently squeezed it, urging her on.

"Jellal, I want- no, I need to know what we are now. We never broke up and we just sort of left things. Not that I've been with anyone else! I just- well that is, I'd like to, um-"

Jellal leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss. He snaked his arms around her, pulling her closer to him. Even when their bodies were practically joined together, she still seemed far away to him. Erza was shocked at first, but smiled, leaning into it. She realized at that moment just how much she missed Jellal. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pushed herself up, deepening the kiss. Jellal brushed the tips of his fingers under her blouse, just barely grazing the skin. Erza almost let out a moan, but then remembered where she was and quickly backed away.

"No. Nope. Not now. Your timing sucks, you know that? Are you trying to get me fired?" Erza hissed. Jellal looked confused, but then realized where they were. He chuckled, "Seeing you made me forget. Sorry about that." Erza shook her head, ignoring how pink her cheeks must have been, "No! I enjoyed it, just not here. Maybe later at my room or yours." Seeing Jellal's shocked face, she turned as red as her hair, "I mean- Not to do that! I mean, maybe if you want to- Wait no! Oh my God, why won't I shut up!?"

Erza turned and saw a customer walk in the store, then turned back to Jellal. "Oh look, a customer! Got to go! See you later Jellal! I mean- not like later but- okay bye." Jellal watched how flustered she was while talking to the customer. He chuckled. He knew others were scared of Erza, but he also knew that they never saw this side of her. After all, her shy side was reserved for him and him only. He loved her, God he loved her so much. He swore to make up for lost time, starting with making sure they went back to how they were before everything happened. Before they were separated.

But first, he needed to tell her just how much he loved her. Starting with that scary four letter word.

.

Levy looked at the clock that read 9:57. Two hours and three minutes. That was the downside about working in the bookstore. While the bookworm loved it, it was open for long periods of time, meaning closing time was midnight. She was slowly putting books away in their proper place because people didn't seem to know how the Dewey Decimal System worked.

She looked mournfully at books that were torn apart, read a few pages of ones that seemed interesting, and soon enough, she found herself slacking off, reading a book she had never seen before.

"Working hard or hardly working?"

She looked up and was ecstatic to see Lucy. "Lu! Oh my God, thank God you're here I was so bored. Wait why are you here?" Lucy sat on the empty space next to Levy, "So Natsu's birthday is coming up and I want to do something special. Like a surprise party or something." Levy nodded excitedly, she loved parties but she loved planning them more, "That sounds like fun!"

"Well obviously you're going to help me plan it." Levy nodded in agreement, "I want it to be in our dorm room so it should be small. Just us, but also maybe the Strauss siblings. I want to try and get in touch with Cana again too. Remember Laxus, Evergreen, Bickslow, and Freed? Them too I guess. Although I'm pretty sure Laxus would just tag along with Mira, Bickslow with Lisanna, and Evergreen with Elfman anyway. I'll still invite them personally though."

"And?" Levy asked, hoping she would say two other names, but at the same time hoping she wouldn't. Lucy eyed Levy, "Gajeel and Juvia. Listen, I know you and Gray are still iffy with them but Natsu isn't and I know he'd want them there. The party is for him after all."

Levy nodded, "No I get it. I'll be nice to him for a day I guess." Levy was almost tempted to make Gajeel answer her questions that he avoided that day, but this was supposed to be a party. A party was meant to be fun and speaking of that would certainly not be fun.

Lucy beamed, "You're the best. I'll just beat up Gray if he starts getting moody. Then again he's always moody. Oh well! I'll start calling these people up and invite them. We won't have to worry about booze because Cana will certainly take care of that." They talked for a little longer about Levy's work shift and this ridiculously complicated customer who gave Lucy the most complicated coffee order she had ever heard. They were laughing and talking nonstop, making Levy forget that she was supposed to be working. Lucy glanced down at her watch, "Oh look! It's almost ten thirty! I should get going! We'll talk about this later."

Levy watched her friend leave, her heart full of Gajeel. As much as she cared about Natsu, she was mainly looking forward to this party for Gajeel. If Cana was able to make it, there would definitely be alcohol, and if there was alcohol, Levy would certainly drink it. This was good, Levy thought to herself, that way if she says or does anything stupid to Gajeel, she can blame it on the alcohol. It was cowardly, but it was a good plan.

If this party went well, shit was definitely going to go down. Levy wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

.

Jellal had the biggest smile on his face as he walked back to his dorm. He was considering telling Gray and Natsu what happened, then decided against it. He wanted to keep it a secret for now, until things got back to how they used to be. Until he and Erza actually became a couple again.

As soon as he went inside the room, he was greeted by Gray who immediately stood up from the couch. Jellal looked around suspiciously, wondering if he had interrupted something. Gray waved off his concerns, "Nothing happened. I just- well, I need to ask you something."

Jellal nodded as he went to the kitchen, looking for any kind of snack. "Go for it."

"Why don't you hate me?" The shock of Gray's question made him want to turn to look at him, but he forgot that his head was in the refrigerator so he ended up slamming his head into its door. "Sorry?" Jellal asked through gritted teeth, trying to ignore the pain shooting through his skull.

"Um... I mean, you know what Ultear did. And you know that I lied when I was questioned. You could have gotten us both jailed out of revenge. So I don't know, why didn't you?" Jellal sighed, it was like talking to Erza all over again.

"I was mad at first. Although we weren't the best of friends, I didn't understand why you would do that to me. I still don't but there was nothing I could do. You both framed me pretty well and there was no evidence to prove me innocent."

"Yes there was. Erza told me. Well, she screamed at me then gave me and Ultear black eyes and split lips. That wasn't even the worst of it." Jellal chuckled, of course Erza wouldn't just leave it alone like he told her too.

"I felt bad for you two. You were heading down the wrong path and I thought my jail time could help you. I had told Erza to keep the evidence and if there was no changes in your behavior, then I was going to tell the truth. But you both moved away shortly after and I knew that the guilt of both of your actions affected Ultear. And although it took three years, she finally came clean didn't she?" Gray nodded, "Yeah, but why did you care about us so much. Why did you give up three years of your time when you didn't have too? Let's be real Jellal, me and you were more of acquaintances than friends."

Jellal nodded, "I know. But your life was falling apart. You were living a life you didn't want too, giving up your friends for your sister and hating yourself for it. But you refused to abandon her when everyone else did, so you went along with her, watching as her life spiraled downwards. I'm surprised you didn't try to help her."

Gray fell back on the couch, not surprised Jellal knew that about him. He never told anyone that he only followed Ultear because he felt sorry for her and obligated to do so. Somehow, Jellal seemed to know everything about everybody. Psychology was perfect for him. Gray stared at the ceiling, "I tried. Maybe not enough, but I tried. She was my older sister and I thought that if I pushed too hard, she would think I was disappointed in her. Although I was, she was already so broken, I was afraid to push her over the edge. So I... went along with it. This way, I could watch over her and she wouldn't be alone."

Jellal nodded, "She probably wouldn't be alive right now if you hadn't." Gray nodded. Jellal had said the words Gray couldn't bring himself to say. "Anyway, that's why I'm not angry. I saw it as opportunity to save the both of you so I stuck with it. It wasn't too bad."

Gray sat up and just stared at him, "Are you human? Maybe an angel? I don't know, I've never met anyone so... selfless." Jellal shrugged, "I'm an alien." Gray chuckled, "Should've known. That's why Erza never threatens you or hurts you like she does to the rest of us." Jellal laughed as Gray stood up and walked over to him. He stuck out his hand, "Friends?"

Jellal nodded and returned the gesture, "Friends."

.

"Panther Lilly."

Juvia looked up from the laptop screen, a part of her curious on what Gajeel was talking about and the other part mad that he had broken her train of thought. Papers don't write themselves!

Seeing her confusion, Gajeel went on, "You told me to find a way to make Lilly more manly. So I added Panther to it. What do you think?" Juvia beamed at him, "Juvia likes it. Let's ask him!" She pointed to her side and Gajeel saw the cat looking at him.

"Do you like Panther Lilly?" Juvia asked. Gajeel rolled his eyes, wondering why she was talking to it like it understood her. The cat looked her for a moment before meowing in response, cuddling up in her lap. "Juvia thinks he likes it." Gajeel plopped down on the couch next to her and eyed the black ball of fur, "Gajeel thinks the damn thing doesn't know English. Why a cat?"

Juvia grinned at him, "Because this apartment was becoming too dull for Juvia!" Well that wasn't a complete lie. Gajeel just groaned. Leave it to Juvia to come up with some crazy idea like getting a cat. "Your idea, your responsibility. I am not taking care of this thing." Juvia frowned at him and turned back to her paper. "We'll see." She whispered with a small smirk.

After Gajeel had taken a shower, he went back to check up on Juvia, not surprised to see that she was still working there. "Did you already shower?" Juvia shook her head, "Juvia has been doing homework all day. But Juvia just finished so she will go now!" As she got up and turned off her laptop, an idea struck her, "I haven't fed Lilly yet so can you do it while I'm showering? Thanks Gajeel!" She said it all so quickly that Gajeel didn't have the chance to refuse. Next thing he knew, the red eyed cat and the red eyed man where having a staring contest with each other.

"I fucking hate you."

The cat meowed in response, as if saying "same".

Gajeel poured the cat food and watched as it ate peacefully. It almost looked... cute. Nope. No. Gajeel shook his head. This cat was not cute. It was a nuisance and he hated it. He went to the couch and turned on the TV, hoping a good show would be on. Moments later, Panther Lilly jumped up on his lap and cuddled up to him. "I'm going to push you off." Gajeel threatened, although it was an empty one. As he gazed at the cat, sleeping so peacefully, he felt bad about disturbing it.

He stared longer at the cat, realizing it did look pretty cool. With its black fur, red eyes, and scar, they almost resembled each other. He expected a more feminine looking cat but this one looked... badass. Maybe Juvia's impulsive shopping wasn't always a bad thing.

"I guess you're not too bad. Just this once you can sleep on me."

When Juvia got out of the shower and saw Lilly asleep on Gajeel, who was also fast asleep, she made sure she took several pictures.

 **.**

 **I really liked this chapter. Like loved it. Idk why.**

 **I can't wait for Cana to come and fuck shit up. I'm wondering how I'm going to add Cana bringing alcohol when she's supposed to be the same age as them. Maybe Gildarts will be the cool dad? I also can't wait for the birthday party. Like I love writing drunk people because you could literally make them do or say anything and it will be hilarious.**

 **These chapters are so freaking long! Tell me if you want me to shorten them! I won't take out content but I will split them into separate chapters.**

 **Hope you enjoyed it! See you in the next chapter :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Where have I been? I'm so sorry. I'm sure none of the people who read this in the past are here now, but if you are and for any new readers, hi! Honestly, I don't know why I didn't upload this sooner. I had it done for a long time. I just finished writing Siren's Song (if you haven't read it, you should check it out), and now my complete focus is going to be on this. Meaning (hopefully) REGULAR updates. I'm honestly so upset with myself for leaving this behind for this long. I swore I never would, but the past two years have been hard for me. No more excuses now!**

 **By the way, I revised and edited the previous chapters too if you want to check it out. You probably should anyway since its been forever.**

 **Hope you all want to stay with me. Enjoy!**

 **.**

Chapter 5: Jellal Fails

"So Lucy is throwing a surprise party for Natsu. They wanted to get fakes for everyone and go to Phantom." Gajeel couldn't hold back his laughter when he saw Juvia's horrified face, "Just kidding. I think they're throwing something small at the girls' room." Juvia took her pillow and threw it at Gajeel, "We're going right? What should we get him?" Gajeel dodged the pillow easily but was then smacked in the face by the second one Juvia sneakily threw at him, "The guy loves fireball, doesn't he? Why don't we get him a bottle of that and call it a gift?"

Juvia shook her head, "He would love it but then everyone would wonder how we got that." Gajeel shrugged, "It's his birthday. We can deal with it just this once. Anyway, it'll be easy for us to get. We'll just tell Porla we're taking two bottles from the inventory. What's he going to do? Fire us? We know too much about him." Juvia groaned, angered just by the mention of his name, "I hate that we work under Porla still. He was the reason you got addicted to cocaine back in Oak Town to begin with. Now, even after all the hell he put us through, we still work under him and rely on him for paying our bills. It's his name on my paychecks and its makes my blood boil every time I deposit them. You always ask me why I never want anyone to know and that's why! Because telling people I work at Phantom is like announcing that I still rely on even when he screwed us over our entire lives!"

Gajeel just stared at her in shock. He didn't hold grudges against him like she did, even though it was his life that got messed up. Sure, he hated the man, but Juvia absolutely despised him. Everything she said was true, Porla had messed up his life, which in turn messed up Juvia's when she left everything she had behind to give them both a fresh start. He realized then her past relationship with Bora had nothing to do with the leave. She claimed it was her reason, but it wasn't. No matter how much she loved him, she was too strong for that, but he was stupid enough to believe it. Or maybe he knew it wasn't true, but he didn't want to believe that he screwed up her life.

It was always him.

"Do you resent me Juvia? Even just a little but?" Juvia looked at him with confusion. "I know you hate Porla for what he did, but I could have easily said no. If I didn't crack under pressure, if I had just walked away, none of this would have happened. We wouldn't have had to struggle as much as we are now. You wouldn't be having to work two jobs while going to class full time."

Juvia sighed, "I wonder sometimes why you did what you did. But I don't resent you. Jose Porla was a manipulative man. You could absolutely love life and he would still be able to convince you to commit suicide. It was hard, but we had each other every step of the way."

"He threatened to hurt you. He knew how much I cared for you and threatened to... he threatened to-" Gajeel couldn't stop the tears pooling at his eyes. Not many things could make him cry, but someone trying to hurt someone he loved was one of them. Juvia shook her head and hugged him, "It doesn't matter anymore. If he was going to do something to us, he would have by now. This is our life, he can't ruin it anymore."

"So fireball?" Gajeel asked, wiping away the tears before they fell "It's his inventory anyway." Juvia chuckled and nodded, "Fireball. And a little extra."

.

Jellal stood outside Heart Kreuz with a box of chocolates in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in another. Today he was going to tell her he loved her. It was cheesy and typical, but Erza was a sucker for romance. He could already picture her with the heart eyes. It was four forty five and he knew she would be out in fifteen minutes. So he waited.

And waited.

And waited.

At five thirty, he knew something was wrong. He went inside and looked around hoping to see his scarlet haired beauty. Instead he caught the attention of another worker.

"Oh, are you Erza's boyfriend." Jellal nodded, not caring if they weren't official yet. "I asked her if she could switch with me for another day next week. So I took her shift today."

"...So she's not here." So he waited for nothing.

"Nope, sorry." The woman smiled at him before walking off to another customer.

Jellal shoulders drooped in defeat but then he quickly raised his head high. One loss wouldn't get him down. He would go to her room and give them to her that way! What could go wrong?

.

"Did you feed Lilly?" Juvia asked from the bedroom. "Yeah." Gajeel huffed, grumpy because it seemed this cat was becoming more of his responsibility than hers. "Are you going to work?" Juvia nodded even though she knew he couldn't see her, "To make sure they don't call me in over the weekend, I'm working extra today." Gajeel nodded, suddenly remembering Gray's promise to find out her work hours himself. He stared at the door Juvia was behind, almost tempted to tell her. Gajeel nodded. He was going to tell her. No matter what, he was not going to let Juvia leave this apartment without telling her what he told Gray.

"Alright I'm leaving."

"Bye."

Or not.

.

Jellal knocked on the door a thousand times, continuing his annoying rhythm until a very angry looking Lucy opened the door. He noticed a small furry object moving around but decided not to mention it. He was a man on a mission.

"Is Erza here?"

"No. She just left to the mall to get a new dress for the party." Jellal almost groaned in frustration. Was fate trying to tell him something? "What store?"

"What kind of question is that? Heart Kre-"

"Thanks bye!" He said, speeding off.

Lucy watched him run off, then shrugged and close the door. Not her relationship, not her problem.

.

Gray looked insane and desperate, which he absolutely was. He had been waiting outside 8Island since it opened, waiting to see if Juvia worked today. He was outside for so long, the owner had gotten worried and wondered if he was okay. He looked like a mad man but if it was for Juvia, he was okay with it. He couldn't help but chuckle at his behavior. This was such a Juvia thing to do. Now the roles were reversed and he finally understood how she must've felt all those years before they had gotten together.

He wanted her. He needed her. He had told Gajeel that he was okay with just friendship but that was a lie. He couldn't picture anything other than a romantic relationship when it came to Juvia. He was still in love with her, and although she was angry with him, he was sure she still loved him too.

"Juvia, you turned me into such a fucking sap."

"Gray? Is that you?"

.

Jellal, sweaty and exhausted, brought all off the attention to himself as he burst through the doors of Heart Kreuz once again. He looked around the entire store twice, even going to the men's section out of desperation. Seeing she was nowhere in sight, his shoulders slumped again, until he saw that familiar worker from earlier.

"Excuse me miss! Was Erza here?" She nodded happily, "She was! She just bought the sexiest dress" For a minute, Jellal forgot why he was here and tried to picture the dress. How sexy was it? How gorgeous would she look in it? He wanted to see her in it first. But his mind began to wander. What if other men saw her in it and tried to touch her? What if she was too sexy? But first he needed to find her!

"Is she still here!?"

"No she just left around ten minutes ago."

Life hated him, he was sure of it.

.

Juvia wanted to run back home and cry to Gajeel. Gray looked like he was waiting here, waiting for her. How did he even know where she worked?

"What are you doing here?"

"I needed to talk to you. I want to apologize." Juvia froze. Was he apologizing for the past. No, he couldn't. If he apologized, she would want to forgive him. She would want to get back together him. Whether he wanted the same thing, she couldn't let it happen. She needed to hate him. She needed to keep him out of her life.

"I have to go work."

"I love you. I love you and I'm so sorry about the past." Juvia turned away to hide her tears. She couldn't deal with this right now. She wasn't prepared to see him today. She wanted him to take her in his arms and kiss her passionately. But she knew better.

"I can't do this right now."

"Juvia please."

She turned around to look him in the eyes, "Another day, I promise. Just not now." She wasn't sure why she promised that, especially when time alone with him was the last thing she wanted. She knew all he had to do was say the right things and she would be under him before she could even blink. Maybe nothing has changed throughout the years and she still couldn't say no to him.

Gray nodded, "I'm holding you to that." If another day was the best he was going to get, he would gladly accept it.

.

Once again as Erza's doorstep, he knocked furiously and repeatedly. Just like before, a very angry and frustrated Lucy opened the door. "Listen Jellal, I know you know how to knock like an ordinary human being so please-"

"Where is Erza!?" Jellal asked desperately. He needed a long nap after this was over.

"In her room. It's rude to cut people-"

"Thanks bye." He added quickly, stalking over to the door he knew was Erza's. He wasn't even going to knock. He was going to be brash and impulsive, which was so unlike him and guaranteed to make Erza swoon.

"No wait! Don't go in there! She's-" Not even listening to Lucy, Jellal continued onwards, swinging the door open without a second thought.

And what he saw made him grateful and regretful for his decision. There stood a very naked Erza, gaping at him with a dropped jaw and wide eyes. Her cheeks seemed to match the color of her hair.

"Sorry?" Jellal was sure to have a broken nose due to the pillow that was slammed onto his face. This was her scary side that everyone else saw.

"Jellal." Erza said dangerously.

Maybe today wasn't the right time to tell her.

 **.**

 **I had so much fun writing this chapter! I wanted this chapter to be more on the light hearted side because the next few chapters are going to be where drama and serious stuff actually happen. Hope it made you laugh or at least smile!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Yay! An update that doesn't come out a year later! I really try to dedicate the weekend to writing at least 2 or 3 chapters so that I don't feel too behind. Right now, I'm about to start writing chapter 11! It's so refreshing to start this up again.**

 **Hope you enjoy! Also, important note at the end of the chapter so make sure you read it.**

 **.**

Chapter 6: Birthday Shenanigans

Lucy, Levy and Erza were setting up last minute decorations as Gray was preparing to bring Natsu over. They didn't deck the room out in decorations, as they knew there was a high chance that Natsu would destroy everything. A few balloons and streamers here and there and lots of food. The food was the most important part of any party, after all.

"So Lucy. Do you think he'll like your present?" Erza asked as she was taping a 'Happy Birthday Natsu' sign on the wall. Lucy looked at the door to her room, which held what would be Natsu's present. "I hope so. He said he always wanted one but with dorm policies and everything, I wonder if it would be more trouble than anything." Erza shook her head, "There are two other people living in his dorm with him, I think everything will be fine."

Lucy looked at Levy who was suspiciously quiet, "Lev?"

"Do you guys think that Gajeel is coming?" Lucy nodded, "He said he was." Levy bit her lip as she tried to hide her excitement. "Oh. I hope this party is fun despite the awkwardness." Erza laughed, "Cana is coming and she's bringing alcohol. We'll all forget about the awkwardness, trust me."

"Juvia just texted me saying they're five minutes away. Oh! Gray just said he and Natsu are twenty minutes away! Are you girls ready to party?"

Levy only nodded, more excited about Gajeel coming than anyone else.

.

"Surprise!"

Natsu looked around in shock, "...Is this for me?"

Everyone just rolled their eyes. Lucy lightly kicked Natsu's shin, "Of course it's for you idiot! Who else has a birthday today?" Natsu's eyes widened in realization, causing everyone to groan.

"Anyway, let's give him gifts because I think mine is feeling a little lonely." Lucy exclaimed, skipping to her room. Natsu didn't have time to question what she meant because she quickly emerged holding a blue kitten. "Happy birthday babe." Lucy whispered softly, handing the kitten to Natsu. He responded by giving Lucy a kiss and quickly taking the furry animal. "How did you-"

"I know you had always wanted a cat and if we do it right, we can keep him here without the RA's knowing. What will you name him?"

Natsu looked at his furry blue friend for a moment before giving it a goofy grin. The cat just stared back at him.

"Happy!"

Levy jumped up, "Seeing how none our gifts can even come close to Lucy's, I'm just going to give it to you anyway." Her and Erza went into the kitchen and came back out holding trays of cookies and cupcakes. "We know you love food." Erza shrugged. They could practically see the heart eyes on Natsu's face as he gobbled the treats down.

Juvia blushed at Gajeel and handed the bag to him. He just rolled his eyes and tossed it to Natsu. "Happy birthday or whatever. Drink responsibly." Natsu held up the two bottles of Fireball, looking excited but very confused on how two minors managed to get this. Gajeel shook his head, "Don't ask." Natsu shrugged, caring more that he now had two bottles of his favorite liquor then how they got it.

"I'm here!" Cana exclaimed, bursting through the door with two suitcases in hand. Anyone else seeing her would think she was staying over for a few days. But to the people who knew anything about her, they knew those suitcases were not filled with clothes. "You're late. We're giving gifts." Lucy rolled her eyes with a wide smile. Cana froze when she saw Juvia, who jumped up from the couch to hug her. They had been best friends before the move.

"Then I came at the right time!" Cana exclaimed, giving Juvia the 'We'll talk about everything later' eyes. "Because you all know what my gift is. Let's get this party started!"

.

The night had consisted of drinking games. They played Jenga and Cards Against Humanity, first as a drinking game then just playing it while they were all drunk. The drunker Natsu got, the more he tipped the tower over. Cana had purposely knocked it down as an excuse to drink, making everyone roll their eyes. Typical Cana move. They stupidly decided to play Twister, which Juvia knew Cana brought just to cause a fight between the boys.

"You tribbed me om burrrpos!" Natsu slurred, attempting to scream at Gray but instead was just waving his finger at the couch.

"I'm gite hur dumbass!" Gray exclaimed, attempting to punch Natsu but just fell against him.

"I'm gonna dick your ass!"

That got the attention of everyone in the room. Lucy cringed as she got her phone out, ready to record everything. Jellal looked over at her, appalled, "That's your boyfriend." Lucy shrugged, "Blackmail takes priority." Juvia just stared, wondering what was about to happen. She was not drunk enough to see Gray and Natsu porn. They all quickly realized he meant to say kick as they started to fight, but considering that they kept missing each other, everyone went back to ignoring them. They would tire themselves out soon.

Eventually, they passed out and Lucy quick to join them. She had fallen asleep next to the cat, swearing she was one too by constantly purring and licking her hand. She had said the cat was her long-lost brother and that fate had brought them back together. Once the troublemakers were out, Erza and Jellal had taken to one of the rooms. The last four knew what they were up too.

"I've seen Erza drunk before. She has a queen complex, I swear." Cana nodded in agreement, "But maybe Jellal is into that. Maybe BDSM is their thing, except Erza is the dom and Jellal is the sub." Juvia shrugged, "I've never seen Jellal drunk. For all we know, he takes over." Cana almost drooled at the thought, "Man, I need to get laid."

Juvia turned to her, "You're not with Bacchus anymore?" Cana shrugged, "We're on and off. We decided to figure it out once we graduate college." Juvia nodded but said nothing. She stared at Gray, wishing she could talk to him about their past and see if they had a future. Deep down, she knew they couldn't. She couldn't forgive him. She couldn't forgive herself.

From the corner of her eyes. Juvia had noticed Gajeel and Levy go into one of the rooms. She sighed in relief. hoping they would work things out. She wanted nothing but the best for Gajeel. He deserved it, and Levy had done him no wrong. They would be fine. Once Gajeel could get over his pride, she knew Levy would forgive him in a heartbeat.

"So Juvia," Cana started. Juvia inwardly groaned. She knew it was coming, "Where the fuck were you? Why did you leave without saying good bye? Why didn't you ever try to hit me up while you were gone. I left messages all over your fucking social media and I'm pretty sure I blew up your voicemails." There were many reasons why, but she couldn't tell Cana. Out of all the girls, Cana was her best friend. They had always been the closest and trusted each other with their whole lives. Juvia didn't know why she didn't turn to Cana first before running away and it killed her inside. She couldn't imagine how hurt Cana must have been. "I was afraid."

"Of what?" Cana asked, her voice cracking a bit. It took a lot to hurt Cana Alberona, but this certainly did it. She couldn't believe Juvia was so afraid of a situation that she felt that Cana was untrustworthy. "Of being judged." Cana didn't understand. "I mean, when I heard why you left I thought it was stupid. It also didn't sound like you at all. Why do you think I would judge you? Maybe other people would- and they did but I would tell them to fuck off- but I wouldn't do you like that. You know I would just tell you when you're being stupid, but in the end its your choice to make." Juvia sighed. Cana didn't understand. Nobody understood. Nobody would understand if they believed the lie. In this room, only Gajeel knew the full truth and Gray knew most of it, and she wanted to keep it that way. She wanted that mistake to be buried in the past.

"You came here to make a fresh start, didn't you? Start by being honest." Juvia raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean? You already know everything don't you?" Cana rolled her eyes, "I'm not stupid Juvia and I know you better than anyone else in this room. Okay, everyone except Gajeel. The point is, a break up with Gray is not the reason you would just pack up and leave. So, you can either be honest with me or we can just part ways right here." Juvia looked at Cana in shock, hoping she would laugh and say that she was joking. Instead, Cana narrowed her eyes, staring intently at Juvia. Juvia was sure she had never seen Cana so serious, but she couldn't even feel offended. Cana was not one to take bullshit. If she felt someone was being fake with her, she would cut them off right away. Juvia already knew how hurt she must have been since they were best friends. It made her feel even more guilty. It was Juvia's own fault she was in this position. She should have trusted her.

"I just can't fool you, can I?" Juvia sighed. There went her buzz.

.

They were drunk. Or at least, Jellal was. Erza moaned as her back was pressed against the wall by a very aggressive Jellal. That was something only Erza knew. When Jellal was drunk, he completely dominated Erza. Not that she minded, especially right now.

"Jellal." She moaned.

"I love you Erza." Jellal knew he was drunk but the words were true. Even Erza knew. The alcohol made him less shy, which in her eyes was a relief. Timid Jellal made her confused. "Tell me you want this." He groaned as he threw her on the bed. Erza gasped, not expecting this much aggression. It wasn't a bad thing, but still a shock nonetheless. She laid on the bed, her dress already halfway down her body.

"I-"

Jellal kissed her stomach, working his way down as he lowered her skirt. "I may be drunk, but if you say no, I'll stop."

"I-" Erza froze. She knew she wanted this, but she also knew she didn't want him to be drunk. What if he didn't remember tomorrow? What is he regretted it? She would never be able to face him. "Tell me baby." He caressed one thigh and kissed the other. Erza moaned, realizing she was too drunk to care. Regret can be tomorrow's problem. Right now, all she knew was that it had been three years and she missed the love of her life.

Erza wrapped her bare legs around his hips and her arms around his neck, "I love you too."

.

Gajeel had offered Levy to talk. Even though Levy said she wouldn't talk about that now, she agreed.

"Ask away." Gajeel said. He wasn't a man to beat around the bush. Although Levy wanted to take the opportunity, it was a party after all. "We don't have to do this here."

"We do." Gajeel groaned, "We may not get a perfect chance like this again. My buzz is already dead so ask." Levy wanted to say hers was too, but she hadn't even drunk. She was too nervous of making a fool out of herself in front of Gajeel.

"Why did you leave?"

Gajeel slumped onto the bed. He should've known that would be the first. "We had too. Juvia was to-" Gajeel stopped. When would the lie be put to rest? How was he going to make up with Levy if he couldn't be honest? She deserved it after all. "I was put in a bad situation. Juvia thought it would be best to go before it got out of hand."

Levy took a deep breath and sat down next to him. "How bad?"

"Cocaine." Levy was fuming, "Gray sold you cocaine!? That piece of shit! I'm gonna-" Gajeel held her hand to keep her in place, "Not Gray. Ultear. I had a past with it and Juvia might have let it slip to Gray, who told Ultear and I became their next client." Levy looked at him concerned. He told her he got involved with drugs in his past but he never told her how serious it was. "Did you…"

"No. But I almost did. I was so close to cracking, I freaked and told Juvia. I told her that if I was put in the situation again, I might do it. I don't even like it, but there's something about Ultear. She's so manipulative." In his head, Gajeel realized Porla and Ultear were eerily similar.

"I didn't want you to think I was pathetic. So, I left without telling you."

Levy climbed onto his lap, "Why would I think that. I would have thought you were so strong. It was hard for you but you still said no. Not many people can achieve that." Gajeel shrugged, "I thought of you. I didn't want to go back to the person I was because I wanted to be a better person for you." Levy blushed and turned her head away, but Gajeel place a finger under her chin and brought her back, "I thought about you every day. I'm so sorry I broke your heart." Even Juvia was so mad at me for not telling you." Levy chuckled, "I wish you did. I would have followed you and brought you back. Or at least stayed with you." Gajeel nodded, "I know. That's why I didn't. I already forced Juvia to drop everything, not once but twice. I couldn't do it to you too." Levy almost asked for clarification, but decided against it. They already hit a big milestone for their reconciliation, she didn't want to push it. She lightly pushed Gajeel down on the bed and cuddled with him.

"Promise me you won't do that again. I don't think I'll be able to take it."

"I promise. I'm here to stay." Gajeel wrapped his arms around her small frame. He misses the feeling of her warmth. She fit so perfectly in his arms, like she was destined to be his from the start. "I'm not leaving you again."

.

"I broke up with him."

Juvia groaned, already seeing Cana shaking. She was basically the female version of Gajeel when it came to anger. "That prick told everyone-"

"I told him too." Seeing Cana's shocked face, she continued, "People would ask to many questions if they knew it was me. I was so obsessed and in love with the guy from the beginning, then I'm the one breaking up with him? It would be too much. At least if it was Gray, they would assume my obsessive nature was too much for him. I'm pretty sure half the school was betting against us anyway."

Cana shrugged, "Oh yeah they were. It was fun to kick their asses. Who cares if they asked questions?" Cana stopped to think, "Wait. Why did you even break up?"  
"Juvia sighed, "We were moving back. I didn't want to do long distance." She looked up at Cana, who was glaring at her. "More lies?"

"Listen Cana. I can't say it because it's more Gajeel's secret than mine. I love you and trust you more than any girl in the world, but I can't do that to him." Juvia sighed in relief when Cana's eyes softened. "I can respect that, I guess." She hated it, but she would deal with it.

"You only left because of what happened with Gajeel?"

Juvia paused. Should she go on? Should she tell Cana the one secret that she wanted to keep buried for the rest of her life? Only Gajeel knew, and she wanted to keep it that way. She hadn't even told Sting. But she knew Cana wouldn't tell a soul and Juvia knew Cana would be able to tell if she lied to her right now.

"Juvia?"

"I was pregnant."

 **.**

 **Bruh.**

 **So, as I'm writing later chapters, I realized** **that this story is going to get extremely dark and contain a lot of mature themes. I may end up having to change the rating to M because it just won't be appropriate to keep it at T. If that makes any reader uncomfortable, I want to let you know now so you can decide if you want to stop reading this. I'm sorry. I just got back into this story and it's completely my fault for not having it properly planned from the beginning.**


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm so evil for ending the last chapter like that. I was laughing at all of your shocked reactions. Guess what? You're in for a surprise.**

 **BTW THIS IS NOW RATED M! The themes get darker and more mature, so I'm changing it for that. But maybe now that it's M I'll make some scenes more *ahem* sexier.**

 **.**

Chapter 7: Talk to Me

"You were WHAT!?" Cana exclaimed. Juvia quickly covered her mouth and frantically looked over to the sleeping Gray. Gray was quite the light sleeper and although he may have passed out, she wasn't sure if he would stay that way for long.

"Please Cana." Juvia begged. She also didn't know if Gajeel, Levy, Erza, and Jellal were still up. "Calm down."

Cana shoved Juvia away, "Calm down my ass! How could you not tell me? Did you think I would abandon you? I would've been there every step of the way. Did Gray…" Cana stopped mid-sentence and glared at Gray's sleeping form. She slowly stood up, grabbing the first thing she could find. Juvia groaned, grabbing Cana and seating her down, "He didn't abandon me! He doesn't even know!" Cana glare was replaced with shock. Everything was finally put into place, "You were just going to leave and raise this baby alone?" Cana looked down at Juvia's stomach, "Don't tell me." Juvia chuckled at her best friend's reaction, "You really did miss a lot."

.

Erza was the first to wake up, although not pleasantly. She was forced awake when she had a mouthful of hair. She spat it out and almost elbowed her torturer away until she saw his peaceful face. She hadn't seen him like this in years. She wrapped her arms around his back, rubbing soothing circles into it. She hadn't held him like this in so long, she just wanted to enjoy the moment.

She looked between them and smiled at their naked bodies pressed together. She missed the feeling of him. She realized she hadn't been that happy in years. Three to be exact. She blushed as she thought about it. He was so passionate, so raw-

Wait. Raw?

She looked around, hoping to see discarded rubber anywhere around the room. Had they been so in the moment they forgot to use protection? Had he pulled out? Erza tried to think back to it to remember if he did but she couldn't. Erza tightened her grip slightly, making Jellal stir.

"Erza?" He mumbled.

"Sorry. Go back to sleep." She closed her eyes, pretending like she was about to. Her mind could only focus on one thing.

They would be fine. Nothing was going to happen.

.

"I'm not a mother. I wasn't pregnant. My period was just late. But the point is that I left thinking that I was. I had every intention to raise this baby without Gray ever knowing. If Gray ever found out, he would never forgive me." Juvia sighed at her own hypocrisy. Here she was swearing she would never forgive him for he did to Gajeel but what about her? She was no better than him.

"Juvia. We were sophomores. You were like fifteen or sixteen. You were freaking out and were already put in a stressful situation. Especially because Gray was doing cocaine. Of course you wouldn't want to raise a baby like that. I just wish you told me."

Juvia smiled at her, "You wouldn't have let me leave if I did." Cana shrugged, knowing it was the truth. "Are you going to tell Gray?" Juvia's smile turned into a frown, "What's the point? It's been three years." Cana eyed Gray, "He deserves to know. He's going to be mad, and granted, he was an ass, but he deserves to know." Juvia followed Cana's stare to Gray. Her heart sank when she thought about how terribly that conversation would go. She was sure he would never talk to her again.

"He would hate me for the rest of his life."

"You two don't talk anymore anyway. What difference would it make? At least you can finally get this off your chest." Cana was right. They didn't talk anymore, but Juvia would never tell her that a part of her was hoping that would change.

"It's been three years Juvia. It's time to lay your demons to rest."

As they both sipped their drinks in silence, they changed the conversation to more light-hearted topics and eventually lulled themselves to sleep. They were both so tired, they didn't notice a certain salmon haired man stir in his sleep. A man who had exceptionally good hearing but was too sleepy and still tipsy to pay attention to every word. Natsu sat up when he heard their steady breathing, his mouth agape and his eyes bugged out at Juvia.

"Juvia was pregnant?"

.

 _He missed the feeling of the silk slips Juvia would always wear to bed, which he always took off with ease. He missed the smell of her hair, which always had a unique smell of the salty ocean. He missed the feeling of her milky arms and smooth legs wrapped around him, squeezing him tighter as he thrusted deeper into her. He missed the amount of pleasure he felt as he watched his lover reach the peak of her climax. He missed the way her walls squeezed around him, begging him to never stop._

" _Gray" She moaned._

 _He cupped her breast with one hand and pulled her hair roughly with the other. He was aggressive in bed, sometimes maybe too much. But Juvia never complained. If anything, Gray was sure it was her secret desire._

" _Louder." He demanded._

" _Make me." She teased. He loved her so much. Everyone outside their relationship may have thought he had her wrapped around his finger, but it was the complete opposite. He was whipped. He fell so hard, so fast. He would do anything for her._

 _He stopped his rhythm for a moment and pulled her hair to make her face him. She gasped, and Gray chuckled at the anger in her face. "Why would you-"_

" _Never leave me."_

" _What?"  
"Never leave me. I wouldn't be able to go on without you. I can't imagine my life anymore without you in it." Juvia wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. It was gentle at first, which he knew was her promise to him. He kissed her back just as softly, sealing the promise. He kissed her more aggressively as he held her wrists above her head. She gasped at the sudden force, but Gray knew by her flushed cheeks that she loved it. She loved to be dominated,_

" _You're mine now."_

" _Forever and always."_

Gray shot up and looked around. Natsu was no longer next to him and Lucy was snoring louder than she ever could. Happy was also gone, but Gray assumed he had just followed Natsu. Gray looked to the couch and saw Cana and Juvia had managed to make it there before falling asleep. He crawled his way over to his blue haired beauty.

She was still so beautiful, if anything more so. He knew he had always missed her, but now that she was within arm's reach, he realized just how much he yearned for her. Not just sexually, despite the dream he just had, but emotionally too. Juvia kept him on his feet. When his anxiety became too much to bear, she would be right there to calm him down. She was the cure for all his problems and he didn't even know it until she was gone.

She had saved him from his life of depression and he betrayed her.

"And you don't even know the half of it." He sighed in disappointment. She would never know. He would never betray Ultear, no matter how much it hurt him.

.

Natsu didn't want to leave the room in his tipsy state, but he needed air. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Juvia was pregnant. Suddenly it all made sense. He knew that Gray and Juvia were going strong, so the sudden break up confused him to no end. Did Juvia tell Gray she was pregnant so he broke up with her? Was he that much of an asshole? He wouldn't even grow up and take responsibility for his own child?

Natsu's fists clenched in anger. He forgave him so easily. He believed that Gray was truly sorry for his actions. Another one of Gray's lies. He claimed he wanted everyone's forgiveness, but isn't even trying to get it from the one person that mattered most. The one person he hurt the most. Instead he ignored her. Even when she's in the same room as him, he won't even speak a word to her. He let everyone in their school believe Juvia was too clingy, which was the reason for their break up. He didn't start the rumor, but he didn't deny it either. Natsu was stomping at this point. He wondered if this was the type of person Gray always was, and they were all just too trusting to see it.

He wondered where the cocaine came into play. Gray and Ultear had left, only saying they needed to 'find themselves'. No one knew what it meant, but they never responded to any form of communication, so the question was never answered. They all then put two and two together and assumed they left because Erza had told them they were doing the drug and were about to get caught, so they planted it with Jellal, who was forced to take the fall for them. She claimed she had no evidence but she was so dead set on the theory that everyone else believed it. Erza was not one to judge anybody, so the fact that she was made it all the more serious. She made them promise not to tell a soul. If it wasn't for Lucy's outburst on their first day of college, Natsu was sure Gray would never know that they knew what he was doing.

He grabbed his new cat and raised him up to his eye level. "Oh my God! Happy! Juvia must have known from the beginning and made him choose! Drugs or her and the baby." His face darkened as he came to another conclusion.

"Gray chose… drugs? Over his girlfriend? Over his fucking child?"

Happy looked up at his master, meowing at the sudden silence. Natsu looked back to the dorm buildings, planning his attack. He was going to tell everyone what Gray did to Juvia and let them see the asshole he really was. He didn't deserve their forgiveness. How dare he play them?

"I'm going to fucking kill him."

 **.**

 **Lmao it only keeps getting better. Don't you love when people only assume and don't ask questions first? #MyLife**


	8. Chapter 8

**I usually respond to reviews at the end of the chapter, but I figured this would be a good way to clear up anyone's confusion before we carry on.**

 **Guest: Juvia definitely is not fucked in the head lol, you clearly misunderstood the chapter. Juvia ran away thinking she was pregnant. She didn't find out she wasn't until her and Gajeel already left. She felt guilty because she had every intention of raising the child without Gray ever knowing, despite it being his kid. The feelings of guilt are even more amplified because she is at the same time holding his dishonesty against him. I hope this cleared up some things for you.**

 **Just in case anyone else thought that as well, I just wanted to clear that up. Everyone else I'll respond to at the end of the chapter.**

 **.**

Chapter 8: The Morning After

Natsu entered quietly. Although he was angry, he didn't want to wake everyone, especially Juvia. He wondered how raising a child must have been, especially at such a young age. At least Gajeel was there in the child's life. The baby at least had a father figure, even if it wasn't the biological father. He felt sorry for them. They had to balance college, jobs, and a baby. He thought back to the day they reunited, remembering how uptight Juvia was and how she was rushing to leave. It wasn't the atmosphere, she probably needed to go back to her child.

"And she's keeping it a secret from everyone." Natsu sighed. He wanted to meet the little one.

He straightened up when he saw Lucy get out of the bathroom. "Where were you?" She pouted, "You should have woken me up if you were leaving." Natsu sighed and grabbed her wrist, pulling her close so he could whisper. "I needed air."

"For?"  
"You'll never believe what I'm about to tell you."

.

Erza hadn't been able to go back to sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about what had just happened. She was overjoyed that she was able to be with the love of her life again, but she couldn't stop thinking about the consequences. Would she find out she's pregnant within a month? When had she gotten her period? Maybe she wasn't even ovulating.

"It's been years and I can still tell when you're stressing without even looking at you." Jellal chuckled, looking up at his crimson haired beauty. "What's wrong my love?" He missed this view of her.

Erza laughed nervously, "It's nothing." She prayed he wouldn't see through her.

"You're a terrible liar."

'Fuck.' "Really. It's nothing. I'm just wondering how we should tell the others."

Jellal sat up with a frown. Did she think he was that dumb? "We just tell them the truth. I'm sure they're all expecting it anyway. We weren't exactly subtle in coming in the room. Are you going to tell me the truth now?"

Erza leaned forward and kissed him, hoping to distract him and make him forget. Jellal wasn't buying it and backed away. "Don't tempt me, you demon."

Erza frowned at him, knowing she was caught. She knew Jellal was such an overthinker and he would never let it go and would probably never want to have sex again. He would get so paranoid and uncomfortable around her and most of all, he would never forgive himself. They were finally getting over the past and fixing their relationship. Erza knew this would ruin everything.

"I-"

"GRAY FULLBUSTER WAKE YOUR ASS UP!"

Jellal and Erza looked at each other in confusion. They hopped off the bed and yanked their clothes on, knowing there was about to be a fight they would have to stop.

.

Gajeel and Levy stood outside the door, angry that their cuddle session had prematurely ended but also curious to see why Lucy was choking Gray. Seeing Gray, Juvia, and Cana's face, they were probably just as confused too.

"What is going on here?" Juvia asked. She saw Erza coming forward and knew this was about to get ugly. All of them were shocked. They had never seen Lucy so mad in their lives. Her whole body was red and shaking. She looked like she was about to cry. Erza looked over to Natsu and saw he looked just as angry. What had happened overnight?

"How could you do something so disgusting? Especially to Juvia of all people? For something as stupid as drugs? You're a disgusting human being who doesn't even deserve to live!" Lucy tightened her grip, honestly wanting to kill him. She couldn't believe her own actions but she was too angry to care. "We all forgave you! We thought you had changed but you ended up being worse than we thought!"

Erza stepped in, easily prying Lucy's hands from Gray's neck. "What has gotten into you?" Erza exclaimed. "What are you saying?"

"I wish I knew!" Gray yelled, coughing to regain his breath. He leaned against the couch and glared at Lucy, "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Me?" "Her?" Natsu and Lucy shouted at the same time. Everyone looked between them, wondering what they knew about Gray that everyone else, including Gray, didn't. "You won't even man up to it?" Natsu growled. "I don't know what I'm supposed to be manning up to!" Gray growled back, stepping closer to Natsu. Erza immediately let go of Lucy, stepping in between the bigger threat. Lucy tried to take the new opening and tried to attack Gray again, but this time Juvia held her back. "What has gotten into you?" She repeated.

Lucy's eyes widened at the sight of Juvia defending Gray, "I'm doing what you should have done years ago!" Juvia raised an eyebrow, not understanding what she meant. She looked at Cana, who looked back at her with equal confusion. Juvia wondered if Cana had blurted out her secret. She didn't want to doubt her, but what else would cause such a random outburst, especially when it was about her and Gray. Juvia looked back to Lucy, "What are you talking about?" Lucy scoffed, "Now you're covering for him? You still would do anything for him after all he did to you?"

Juvia froze and let go of Lucy. She knew. Natsu knew. She didn't know what part of it that they knew but they definitely knew something. Before she could further question Lucy, Gajeel stepped in. He had the same thought as Juvia and knew he had to diffuse the situation quickly. "Clearly, Juvia is confused so maybe you don't have your facts straight." Natsu chuckled, "I know they are." Gajeel glared at Natsu, "Well Juvia has no idea what you're talking about so maybe you should check it with her before you make accusations." Lucy opened her mouth but Gajeel covered her mouth with her hand. She was screeching too much and it was giving him a headache.

"Enough!" He was getting irritated, which is not what he wanted after the great night he had. "Calm down, then check your facts. I won't say it again." Natsu then began to doubt what he heard. Both Juvia and Gray seemed clueless. If this was really true, Gajeel wouldn't have let Gray live. Did he hear wrong? He groaned, he needed to calm down. Lucy definitely did too. "Luce, let's go."

"What? But Gray-"

"Lucy." Lucy flinched at how serious Natsu was. She never saw him like this. She sighed and got up, following her boyfriend out the door, but not before giving Gray one last glare.

"We're not done."

Gray just stared after her, still not sure what had just happened. They all stood in silence, not sure what to say after what had just happened. Levy scowled at Gray, "What did you do?" Gray looked offended but rolled his eyes, "Don't just be a follower of Lucy. I meant it when I said I had no idea." Levy rolled her eyes, knowing Lucy wouldn't get that mad over nothing.

Gajeel glared at Juvia. She didn't need words to understand what he was trying to say. Juvia sighed, "We should go." She turned to Cana, "You want to spend the day with us?" Cana nodded swiftly. She knew her and Gajeel were going to talk about what just happened and now that she was in on their loop, she wanted every detail. Erza sighed, "Levy, go after Lucy and Natsu. They need someone calm like you to keep them steady. We'll clean up." She pointed to herself and Jellal. Lecy nodded and didn't waste any more time going after Lucy.

"Hold on!" Gray exclaimed, staring at Juvia with confusion all over his face, "What were they even talking about? They said you should know. Know about what?" Juvia schooled her features. Unlike Erza, she knew how to lie. "I honestly don't know." It wasn't a complete lie. She had a list of ideas, she just didn't know which one it could be.

Gray groaned. He was finally getting his life back. Everything was finally normal and his past no longer weighed him down. Now he was being ostracized for a crime he didn't even know he committed. Even Erza didn't include him in cleaning up. 'I should have never come back. I should have known their forgiveness wouldn't last long.' His past would always haunt him. He just didn't expect it from his so called best friends. Especially not from Natsu. He had been the first to forgive him.

"What did I do?" He whimpered, just like a lost puppy. Juvia broke seeing him like this. Gray always had crippling anxiety. He was an over thinker and would think himself into depression just by someone bumping into him. This is where she would always step in and comfort him. She didn't know how, but she always had this magic touch with him. Just hugging him eased his heartbeat and soothing him calmed his mind. She wanted to hold him in her arms just like before, but what right did she have? She was the one who had hurt him the most, and he didn't even know it.

Juvia turned to Gajeel and Cana, "You two go on first. I'll catch up in a bit." Gray perked up hearing her words. Was she going to stay? Cana and Gajeel both groaned but complied. Erza and Jellal also got the hint and started cleaning in the kitchen. Gray didn't even move. He couldn't believe what was happening. Juvia was now in front of him, her hand outstretched towards him.

"What?"

"You're getting anxious, and I know I'm the only one who can calm you down." Gray smiled at her, taking her hand and leading her to his room. "Just like old times." Juvia's heart swooned just by his smile. She didn't realize how happy she made him until right now. "Don't get your hopes up."

"I know." Gray said, closing the door when they were in the room, "But this is a good start."

Juvia looked between Gray and his bed. 'Please don't let me break.'

She turned back to Gray and saw his shirt already off. Any other girl would think he was trying to make a sexual advance, but Juvia knew Gray already had a hard enough time keeping his clothes on outdoors. Once he was in his room, it was a common occurrence to see him stripped down to his underwear.

A beautiful view of his body that she hadn't seen in years.

She was going to break.

.

"What do you think that was all about?" Erza asked Jellal as she cleaned all the alcohol bottles off the counter. "Who knows." Jellal shrugged. Jellal realized there was a lot he didn't know about the events of three years ago. He only knew what concerned himself, which only involved Ultear and Gray. Other than Gray and Juvia breaking up, what else had happened between them? What was so bad that Lucy and Natsu both got so angry?

"I guess I wasn't the only affect by Gray and Ultear."

"Do you think that's why they were so angry? They knew about Ultear's involvement?" Jellal shook his head, "Then why would they be saying Juvia's name?" Jellal sighed, "What we all need to do is sit down and each give the full details of what happened to each of us that day." Erza nodded, "I agree. It's the only way we can all truly put it behind us. Otherwise things like this will happen, where new hidden details get found out and blows up. What we need is a civilized discussion. No more secrets. It's the only way we'll all really be able to go back to the way we were before. And if it's so bad that we aren't able to, then at least it'll end on an honest note. We won't all have this friendship based on lies."

Jellal was already planning how this was going to go down. It would either break them or build them up even stronger than they were before.

.

Juvia laid on her back as Gray laid his head on her chest. She gasped as he buried his nose into her cleavage, regretting wearing such a low cut dress. Gray immediately backed off, "Sorry! I forgot there are boundaries." Juvia was shaken, but she quickly regained herself. "It's okay. I just want you to calm down." Gray ran his fingers down her waist. "No boundaries?" Juvia bit back a moan, "Gray." She warned, but it didn't even come out as a warning. It was more like a whisper.

"Do you miss us?"

Juvia closed her eyes and enjoyed his touch. It had been three years. She didn't realize how much she craved it. "Of course I do Gray. I missed you every day for the past three years." He buried his head deeper into her chest. "I'm so sorry. I know you said we'll talk about it soon, but I just need to say this. I hurt you the most and I regret it every day. I wish I wasn't so stupid. I wish I was never on drugs." Juvia stroked his hair, "Enough. I'm trying to calm you." Gray chuckled, "I know." He laid kisses on the exposed part of her chest. She gasped, which made him laugh, "Accident." Juvia rolled her eyes. She knew his antics. Two could play at that game. She rolled them over and kissed him. It was meant to be a quick kiss but as soon as their lips touched, time stopped. They both just stared at each other, lips still connected.

Three years.

It was like a jolt of electricity coursed through their bodies, igniting all the pent up frustration and passion that was shoved away from three years ago. Gray grabbed both her arms and pinned her back down on his bed. He kissed her, not afraid to be rough. He bit her lip lightly, to which she exuded a gasp of pleasure. She held his bottom lips between her teeth and pulled him closer, kissing him even fiercer. She wanted all of him, and she knew he wanted her too. Her hands got lost in his hair, pulling the base of the strands. He growled, moving down to her neck and sucking. He wanted to leave marks all over her. Three years made no difference. He wanted to show the world that she was his.

"Is this really calming you down?" Juvia teased. Gray chuckled, "It's about too."

He wanted more. He wanted all of her.

He threw her dress off in a swift motion and admired the body he hadn't seen in three years.

"How much did she miss me?" He teased, eyeing her lower region. Juvia blushed but didn't cover herself. He had already seen her and she was no longer shy about her body. He had helped her work on that insecurity during their high school days. "Why don't you ask her yourself?" Gray smiled as he kissed his way down her body, slowly making his way to her favorite spot. "Let me tell her how much I missed her."

.

"Well?" Cana wasted no time for details as soon as Juvia stepped into the apartment. "Tell me everything." Juvia rolled her eyes, "No. We have more important matters to discuss." Cana pouted but didn't deny that. They needed to figure out what had just happened this morning.

Gajeel wasted no time, "Cana filled me in on your little conversation." Juvia flinched. She was in trouble now. "I don't care that you told her. But why didn't you tell her in a room that didn't have three other people. Sleeping or not, you know how dangerous that is? And you know Natsu has amazingly good hearing."

Cana stood up, "We don't even know if that's what it was." Juvia sighed, "Yes we do. It's all too convenient. I just wish they were smarter about it." Gajeel scoffed, "Natsu? Lucy? Smart? You'll be luckier in seeing a pig fly." Cana slumped on her seat again, "I expected more from Lucy." Juvia sat down on the floor, "I really do appreciate how they were sticking up for me, but they just made everything worse. Now I'll have to talk to them myself and tell them the truth." Juvia covered her face with her hands, "The more people that know, the higher chance Gray is going to find out. I don't trust Natsu and Lucy to keep secrets, especially one like this!" Cana felt guilty, "I'm sorry. I really pressured you to tell me." Juvia just shook her head, "That wasn't the problem. We were stupid to not go outside or something. We were basically asking to get caught."

"Maybe this is a sign." Both Cana and Juvia looked at Gajeel like he had three heads. Those were words they never expected to hear from him. "Listen, I came clean to Levy." Juvia looked at him in shock, reminding him that he didn't tell her that small detail, "Yeah I did. I didn't go into our past with Porla, but I told her why we left." Juvia didn't even have to ask if he spilled her story too. They never would do that to each other. Just like Juvia didn't Cana Gajeel's side, Gajeel wouldn't tell Levy her side. "It's time to just come clean and let it go. If he hates you, then he hates you. Enough with the lies and the hiding. Especially something like this. He needs to hear it from you, not Natsu and Lucy."

Juvia said nothing. She knew he was right. It was time to lay this to rest and move on. She made a mistake and now she needed to own up to it. "I'll tell him."

It was silent for a while. "Did Gray ask about it?" Cana asked, trying to ease her way into finding out what they did. This time she didn't have to worry about the wrong person overhearing.

Juvia blushed, "He did but I- well, I shut him up." Cana roared and Gajeel just covered his ears, not wanting to hear anymore. Juvia groaned as her blush deepened, 'So much for not breaking.'

.

Gray laid in bed. He was happy. He hadn't been this happy in years. He really missed Juvia, not just their body but her. He rolled over and his smiled got wider. She still loved him, he was sure of it. Although he was willing to fight until the end of the world to win her back, he always had the doubt that it was a losing battle. But now, his confidence was reaffirmed. He really did have a chance. He was going to win. There was no way in hell he was backing down now.

His phone rang and he practically jumped to it, hoping to see his blue haired beauty's name. He was slightly disappointed to see another blue haired girl's name, but he still picked up nonetheless. "What's up Levy?"

"Gray, I'm about to tell you something. Don't freak. Natsu and Lucy told me not to tell you, but I just can't keep this a secret. It feels wrong."

"Spill."

"I mean, I could be wrong."

"I said spill."

Levy sighed. Should she have done this? She didn't even ask Gajeel or Juvia. They were clearly trying to keep the baby a secret, but why? What if they found out she was the one who told him? Things were going great with Gajeel now, and she didn't want to mess it up. "Don't tell anyone it was me who told you." Levy warned him, the guilt gnawing at her chest. She just couldn't hide something so huge from him, especially when it had everything to do with him. She wanted to pull her hair out. Why had Lucy told her!? She would have rather not known.

"Levy?"

"Gray, I think that… you're a father."

 **.**

 **All these big mouths damn.**

 **Guest: Please come back alive**

 **TheRedSin: Sorry, it led to more complications :P The way Natsu would beat the crap out of someone over someone he talked to once is one of my favorite things about him.**

 **Glodenglowingsnowdemon: I'm not dead** **Here's the update**


	9. Chapter 9

**I need to back into actually writing this. I'm posting 9 and writing 11 (which I've been on for months), which is not good for me. I have no time to write anymore, and I feel like when I did, I had no mood to do it. *Sigh* I'm not going to go on hiatus but it just sucks to be hitting this writing rut right now.**

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"So you never went into detail about the morning after the party." Cana instigated. She wanted juicy details. Juvia rolled her eyes, eyeing her phone. Gray hadn't been responding to her texts since that day, and it had already been three days. She didn't know what had changed. "I don't plan on it either."

"Juvia! I'm single and not getting any! Let me live through you." Cana whined. Maybe she needed to hit up Bacchus again. Juvia rolled her eyes, knowing she would be the exact same way if the roles were reversed, "We… hit third base. I didn't want to go all the way just like that." Cana fist pumped, "Oral is always great. Both of you?" Juvia shook her head, "Just him. He insisted that he wanted me to know how sorry he was… twice."

"I can't wait for you to fix things. It'll be the best sex ever." Juvia rolled her eyes. With how things were looking, she was sure that wasn't happening. "I don't know Cana. He almost ruined Gajeel's life. I wouldn't feel comfortable." Cana shrugged, "Well first test the waters. IF you two don't feel that connection anymore, then there's no point in worrying. If you two do have a chance, then ask Gajeel. If he approves, what's the problem?" Juvia sighed. She wondered if it was really about Gajeel's permission or her own fears. "He broke my heart Cana. I don't think I could go through that again."

"Don't let the past affect your present. Start slowly. Build up your friendship, come clean to him, then see where it goes." Juvia opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by her phone. "Speak of the devil."

'Can we meet up?'

Cana looked over her shoulder and then at her best friend, "Well?"

"Well, I have work tonight, so I better make it quick. See you."

Cana watched her friend go with a smile. She was happy things were looking up for Juvia. She truly deserved it.

.

Gajeel sat in front of his class. This was the one he had with Levy, and the only reason he showed up early was because he knew she did too. "Who am I?" He muttered, realizing he got up early to spend time with her. This wasn't him. Levy was already changing him.

"Gajeel?" Gajeel perked up hearing the angelic voice. He turned around with a smile reserved just for her, but was confused when he saw her face. She looked nervous and upset, and she was close to tears. "What happened?" Gajeel's face darkened, "Who hurt you? Who do I have to kill?"

"I'm so sorry." Gajeel just stared at her, not understanding why she was apologizing.

"I wasn't thinking. I couldn't handle knowing such a big secret. I felt terrible that he didn't know so I had to tell him. I know it wasn't my secret to tell."

"What?"

"I told Gray about the baby."

Gajeel froze. At least it was confirmed that that's what Lucy and Natsu were yammering on about. Gajeel wanted to punch the wall. It wasn't even true and it was blowing up like this. "Why the fuck would you do that?" He was seething. He never cursed at Levy. He was too angry to care.

Levy stomped her foot on the ground, her guilt turning into anger, "Why didn't you? Or Juvia, more specifically. It's his child too, he has the right to know." There was a part of Gajeel that thought to keep the secret longer. But what was the point now?

"She wasn't fucking pregnant! She thought she was but it was a false alarm! I don't know what the fuck Natsu heard but clearly it wasn't the full truth!" Levy anger dissipated and the consequences of her actions hit her in full force. "I'm so sorry. I should have-"

"Yes Levy. You fucking should have done a lot of things. Like ask one of us. Confirm the truth before you hit Gray with a bomb like that. Yes, Juvia shouldn't have left with the possibility of her being pregnant, but she was going to tell him. Calmly. It was her mistake and she was going to try and right it. Now look what the fuck all of you did! You ruined everything all because you didn't think to confirm the story with one of us first."

"Gajeel." Levy whimpered. She fucked up. She knew it.

"No. I need to go to Juvia." Levy gingerly touched his arm, "I'll sign your name in. Go find her." Gajeel nodded as a form of thanks and took off. Levy wanted to cry. No hug, no kiss, nothing. She had messed things up and they had only just started.

.

Juvia looked around as she stepped into Fairy Tail. She hadn't been in the building in years, but the place looked just same. "Juvia?" She turned toward the voice and saw Laxus Dreyar, grandson of Makarov, the owner. "Hey Laxus, how have you been?" He smiled at her and hugged her, which surprised Juvia. He was never so open and inviting. "I've been great. Just working and taking online classes." Juvia was shocked. Back in high school, he would always say he wasn't going to college. Laxus motioned toward Mirajane, who was waiting tables. "She straightened me out. Made me set my priorities straight." Mirajane turned toward them and gave them a smile before turning to the kitchen. Juvia would never have guessed they would become a thing. Laxus watched her walk away, "When I saw her and Elfman's struggles to send Lisanna to college, I realized I was wasting a good opportunity."

Laxus leaned closer to Juvia, "One day I'm going to marry her."

Juvia's jaw dropped. She never thought she would hear those words come out of his mouth. They were the same age and he was already making future plans. He had his life plan set up, his goals ready to be achieved, and his future ready to be reached. Meanwhile, she was still stuck on high school drama. He had shed his past self and became a respectable man, yet no matter how many times she tried to let go, her past always came back to haunt her.

"I envy you." Juvia whispered.

"What?"

"Have you seen Gray? I'm supposed to meet him here." Laxus nodded and pointed to the table where Gray was watching them while on his phone. He noticed their stare and waved. "You two back together?" Juvia shrugged, "I don't really know." Laxus nodded, "The break up surprised me. I thought you two would be forever and that's coming from high school me, who didn't even believe in love."

Juvia smiled as she walked away from him, "Let's see."

"Hi." She greeted Gray as she sat down. "I was getting worried. I thought I did something wrong."

"You thought right. Were you planning on telling me that I have a kid or were you going to raise the child thinking I walked out from their life? Meanwhile I didn't even know there was a life to walk out on." It took a lot for Gray to keep his voice calm. He wanted to burst. "This whole time you made it seem like I was the complete bad guy. That I hurt you and you were the victim. I did, I admit, but look at you. At least I came clean about it."

Juvia swore she was going to faint right there. What was even happening? At least she was right about Natsu or Lucy overhearing, but why wouldn't they ask her first? Instead they took a false accusation and now ruined what could have been the reconciliation of their relationship. This was not how she wanted to tell him. Everything was ruined. Everything they could have been was ruined.

'I should have never come back.'

"Are you going to say something?"

She wanted too, but no words came out. Was she crying? She couldn't even feel anything. Gray sighed, "I love you Juvia. I'll always love you, but I just can't trust you anymore. I'm so disappointed in you." He began to put his coat on so Juvia grabbed it, "It's not what you think!" She sobbed.

"Then what is it? Are you saying you didn't leave Magnolia knowing you were pregnant?" She wanted to say she didn't know, she only thought. But still she was in the wrong. Had she really been pregnant, she still wouldn't have come back. Although Gray had his facts wrong, had it really happened that way, she would have done it the way he was accusing her of. She didn't say a word. This wasn't how she wanted it to go.

"I'll let Gajeel know you're here. I just can't look at you right now."

Juvia only nodded. She needed her best friend. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to go back to Oak Town.

"Since you know where I live but I don't know where you live, I want you to bring my child to me." He almost said 8PM, but realized the child must have been about three years old. Was that their bed time? "5PM. I'll be waiting." He didn't give her the chance to say another word before storming out.

.

Gajeel burst through the doors, drawing the attention of all the patrons. Laxus motioned him over. "She's crying in the bathroom." Gajeel wanted to murder Gray. "She came in so happy. I don't know what happened. I'll tell Mirajane to bring her out through the side door. The Juvia I remember wouldn't want to be seen in public like that." Gajeel nodded and went around to the side.

Gajeel wanted to blame Levy, but deep down, if it wasn't her it would have been Natsu or Lucy. Still, he felt his trust was broken. All of this could have been avoided with communication. He sighed, no that wasn't it. All of this could have been avoided if they never left in the first place. He felt weak and pathetic. This was all his fault. Juvia left for him and now is suffering all the consequences, meanwhile he was living his best life with Levy. He didn't deserve it. He didn't deserve Juvia.

As soon as he saw her, he wrapped her in the tightest hug he could manage. As soon as she felt his warmth, she broke down again. "I couldn't even tell him there was no child. I couldn't even get a word out." Juvia sobbed, "He thinks I hid a child from him for three years. He said he loved me but can't trust me. How am I supposed to fix things now? It's all over!" Gajeel ran his hand through her hair, trying not to cry himself.

"This is all my fault. We left because of me." Juvia shook her head, "The only person to blame is me. I hid this from him. If I really was pregnant, I would have hidden that from him too. It's all my fault." Gajeel only held her tighter. He didn't know what else to do.

"I wish we never came back."

.

Gajeel and Juvia had stayed like that for a while. When she had finally calmed down, she told him of Gray's proposition. "What are you going to do?" He asked. Juvia sighed, "Go, of course. Tell him the truth. Beg for forgiveness. What else can I do?" Gajeel nodded, at least Juvia was taking responsibility. Running away wasn't her first option anymore. Almost as if she read his thoughts, she responded, "We're not kids anymore. I can't let this high school drama affect me. I need to lay it to rest. From there, I'll figure out what to do."

"Would you think of leaving again?"

Juvia said nothing, but her silence spoke volumes.

"If I do leave, there won't be anything left behind. I'm laying my demons to rest tonight. For good, this time."

They said their goodbyes as Juvia left to meet Gray. Gajeel stared after her, wondering what to do himself. Levy had broken his trust, and her actions led to breaking Juvia. He was mad at her, Natsu, and Lucy for inserting themselves into their drama. He was mad Natsu and Lucy took it like children and screamed about it instead of handling it like adults. He was the most disappointed in Levy. His phone rang and he saw it was a text from her.

'wya? I'm by Fairy Tail, otw home'

'I'm there. Let's talk'

He sat down on one of the outdoor chairs and waited. It didn't take her long to make her way to him. "How did it go?" Gajeel groaned, "Terrible. She's a mess. He told her to come over so he can meet his kid." Levy raised an eyebrow, "I thought there was no kid." Gajeel nodded, "Juvia just went. She's going to explain everything. This isn't how she wanted it to happen but now she has no choice." Gajeel groaned and leaned back in his seat, "It's all a big mess now."

Levy sulked and looked down, "It's all my fault." Gajeel wanted to comfort her. He wanted to say if it wasn't her, it would have been Natsu or Lucy. But deep down, he did blame Levy. Natsu and Lucy had backed off. They probably listened to him and wanted to check their facts first. It had been days and they hadn't said anything. They probably wouldn't have until they had a chance to sit down with Juvia. That was the smart thing to do. The situation getting this out of hand was Levy's fault.

"It is." Levy winced. She hadn't expected him to agree with her. "It is Juvia's fault for this being a situation in the first place, but it's your fault that it got so out of hand. Out of the three of you, I thought you would ask me first."

"I did it for Gray."

"Did what? Get him angry over something that isn't even true. You could have asked me or Juvia first." Levy wanted to argue but he made sense. She should have confirmed the truth. She was there when Gajeel told Natsu and Lucy to get their facts straights. That was enough of a hint to know something was up. She freaked out and spilled, and now she ruined everything.

"I'm so sorry."

"Juvia's a mess right now." Gajeel wondered how hard it must have been for Juvia to leave Gray after he almost ruined his life. He was now in the same shoes. Levy unintentionally broke his best friend into pieces. He couldn't even look at her. "I haven't seen Juvia like this in years. I promised myself I would protect her."

"Gajeel." Levy whimpered. "I don't even know what to say."

"I do. We're not going to work out." Gajeel felt his heart tear into pieces. This is what his weakness had done to Juvia three years back. Juvia was always breaking her heart to save him, now he was going to do the same. "For now. At least, until this all blows over. Then we can try again. But right now, I can't even look at you." He saw tears fall from Levy's eyes. He hated himself right now, but he wanted to do the best thing for Juvia.

"I'm so sorry Gajeel. Please forgive me."

"Not yet." He said, getting up, "I just can't yet."

.

Juvia was miserable. She didn't want to see Gray like this. She sighed, this wasn't how this was supposed to end up. They were supposed to be happy. They were going to calmly talk it out and she would explain that she knew she made a terrible mistake. He would be mad, but at least he would hear it from her first. She couldn't imagine hearing such news from someone else. The anger, the hurt, and most importantly, the betrayal. She would have rather he hated her than said he was disappointed in her. It gnawed at her heart. She had let him down, just like he had to her.

She arrived at his door and knocked. Gray opened it and as soon as he saw her, his features darkened. Juvia winced. "Hi." He didn't respond with a greeting. He moved aside for her to enter, "My room." Was all he said. Juvia hoped no one else was home.

As soon as he shut the room door, she turned around calmly. She wasn't going to break down into tears again. She wouldn't let herself. "I wasn't pregnant." She could see the anger in his eyes disappear immediately and were now replaced with confusion. "You're not a father."

"But Levy-"

"She was wrong. Just like Natsu and Lucy. I had told Cana about it that night and Natsu or Lucy must have heard wrong. But I wasn't pregnant. I'm not hiding a baby from you."

Gray was about to apologize, but stopped himself. "If you were never pregnant, what were you telling Cana about?"

Juvia sighed. It was time to brace herself. Still, she resolved to maintain her calm demeanor. "Because when I left, I thought I was." She saw the anger come back, "I left thinking that I was. And if I had been pregnant, I still would have stayed away. If anything, I probably wouldn't have come back." She knew she was only making it worse, but while she was already being honest, why not?

"So, you had every intention to keep my child away from me. I'm just lucky it was only a late period." Juvia thought about it for a minute, "Yeah. Basically." She yelped as she was suddenly pinned against the wall, "Do you think this is a fucking joke?" He growled. Juvia understood his anger. She was a little too calm. "No but-" She was silenced by his lips smashing against hers. He bit her lip hard, making her gasp. He pulled away and grabbed both her wrists. His eyes darkened with lust and his lips twisted into a sadistic smirk, "You want to hide a baby from me? Why don't I get you pregnant now and see what you do?" Before Juvia could even question him, she was thrown onto his bed, him landing on top of her a second later.

"Gray." She moaned. She wasn't sure if she felt fear or anticipation. "You don't want this."

"I do. No matter how mad I am, I can't control myself around you. I hate you but I'm so in love with you." He sobbed. Juvia's eyes widened as she felt tears hit the nape of her neck. He was crying. She had truly hurt him. She twisted around to face him and held him in her arms. "I'm sorry Gray." She couldn't be calm anymore, as her tears overflowed as well. "It was so stupid of me, and stupider to hide it. Believe me when I say I was going to tell you soon. I wanted us to be more comfortable with each other first. I never wanted it to turn out this way." Gray nodded, but said nothing. He believed her.

"But it doesn't change anything. You left thinking you were pregnant. You were going to raise my baby without me. He or she wouldn't have their father. They would think I left you or abandoned them, but I wouldn't have even known they existed." His hand wrapped around her neck, tight enough to affect her but not tight enough to hurt her. He brought his face to hers, staring deeply into her eyes. "I hate you so much." Juvia didn't fight against his hold. All she could do was look into his eyes and drown in their sorrow. She had done this to him.

"I'm so sorry."

He tightened his grip slightly as he leaned down to kiss her. It was fierce, like this was their final moment. He was pouring all of his emotions into the kiss, his frustration, anger, hurt, betrayal, and sorrow. She took it all in. He used his free hand to pull her hair and head back, exposing her neck. She still had faint marks from their last time together. He wanted to make more.

"Gray." Juvia moaned.

"I want to hurt you." He said as he kissed his way down to her chest. "But I can't. I love you. No matter what you do to me, I'll always love you." Juvia grabbed his face in her hands and made him look at her, "I'm yours."

Gray chuckled, "That's what you say." Juvia shook her head as she undressed herself until she was in nothing more than a lacy bra with matching underwear. Gray could only stare at the perfection he once called his.

"I hate you." He repeated. Juvia leaned closer to his ear, her breathy whisper giving Gray chills.

"Show me."

.

Juvia walked home with an air of distraught around her. She didn't understand what had just happened. Did he truly hate her or just needed time to think it out? Most likely the latter, since he seemed to believe her explanation. Should she wait for him or just let it all go. Perhaps they were just meant to high school lovers that ended where it started. At least all the secrets were out on her end. There is nothing more for him to find out. Nothing more to feel guilty about. She was completely clean of her past, and she never felt better. It was as if a weight was lifted off her shoulders and she could breathe again.

She looked around Magnolia, realizing that every time she was here, something bad happened. Juvia sighed, she should have never come home. Maybe Oak Town was where she belonged. After Bora, she never opened her heart to anyone. And even with Bora, she had never fallen in love with him. Gray was her only true love. Now that was gone. He would never trust her again after this, she realized. They would never go back to the way they were.

She shook her head. She was overthinking.

She entered her apartment, where Gajeel and Cana were waiting for her. "Well?" They asked in unison. "Hate sex. Don't ask why or how. I don't even know." Gajeel scoffed, "Did you wear a condom?" Juvia shrugged, "Did we ever?" Cana rolled her eyes, "Don't make the false rumor a real one."

"I want to go back to Oak Town." Gajeel and Cana just stared at her. "Magnolia doesn't do any good for me. I may not have been happy in Oak Town, but at least nothing or no one could hurt me there. There's too much of my past here." Gajeel shook his head, "You never even see Gray. Only at parties which we could easily skip." Cana pouted. Gajeel shooed her away, "You don't even go here."

"I'm done with Magnolia."

Even Cana was concerned, "Don't compromise your education for Gray. At least finish the semester here. Then transfer wherever you want, no questions asked." Juvia shook her head, "I should have stayed in Oak Town. What was I thinking coming back here when I was still hiding so much? How could I think I'd be able to live a normal life here? I can't do it anymore."

"If you're leaving, I'm going with you." Juvia eyes widened, "Gajeel, no. You have Levy here. I'm not letting you fuck it up." Gajeel scoffed, ready to retort that there was nothing to fuck up now, but he got a glimpse of the time. "Fuck, I got to go to work." He glared at Cana, "Don't leave her alone." Cana saluted and watched him leave. She looked at Juvia with uncertainty, "Well?"

"I'm going without him. I'm not letting him screw up his life for me."

"When?"

"Tonight. I'm packing then leaving. I'm done with Magnolia."

 **.**

 **Ahhh the suspense!**

 **Have to skip review responses for this one! Uploading in a rush but I got all you for the next chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Ahhh finally got this chapter up! I'm sorry it took forever. I kept finding things wrong with it and would want to edit it, but then I never had the time. But finally I'm completely happy with it, so here it is! Hope you enjoy it!**

 **I saw a review on my last chapter that I should put trigger warnings for certain scenes. I was never a fan of trigger warnings because I felt it does more harm than good. But if enough people want them, then I will start to put them in. Let me know!**

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Where was she? Gajeel got home from his shift that night and saw Juvia was missing, along with some of her stuff. Cana was also nowhere to be found. Did she really run off without him? Where would she even go? How could she leave him alone? She was his lifeline. She was the only reason he was able to stay sane. The only reason he was able to stay drug free. He felt his anger seething. It was all Gray's fault. But it wasn't really. He had the right to react the way he did. It just showed how responsible he was.

He looked over at his phone. He could call Juvia, but there was a high chance she wouldn't pick up? Should he call Levy? He scoffed. He had basically ended things and now he wanted to rely on her? Then it hit him. Juvia left him here because she didn't know he had ended things. She didn't want him to sacrifice his relationship for her, despite Juvia doing it for him time and time again. He yanked his hair. He wasn't good at being alone. He didn't know how to handle situations by himself. He had grown to rely on Juvia's wits and now he couldn't function without her. He needed to calm down. But every second that passed, he only stressed himself more and more.

He would wait, just like a normal person would do. She would never abandon him.

.

The next day when Gajeel woke up, he hoped to see his best friend in bed next to him. He sighed when he didn't and wondered where she could have possibly went. He was hoping she went to Crocus with Cana. Maybe she needed a weekend away from Magnolia. He didn't blame her, especially after everything she had went through, but a call or text would have been nice. The fact that she just packed up and left without a word was unlike her. If only her stuff hadn't been missing, he would have thought she was kidnapped. He got up and looked around his apartment. He would have to adjust for now. Life was off without Juvia in it.

A few hours in, he couldn't stop pacing. Juvia definitely had her phone on her. So would Cana. Why haven't any of them kept him updated? He was scratching himself from anxiety. He was stressed. He didn't have anyone to fall on. He needed Juvia. He needed Levy. He needed some form of release. He thought of punching the wall, but he knew Juvia would kill him if she came back to a hole in the wall. He could punch his pillow. He shook his head. Too many pillows of his deflated due to that tactic. He paced around quicker. What could he do?

'One more day. Just wait one more day.'

.

The next day, he stared at himself in the mirror for a long time. In the span of three days, he had lost his mind and sense of reality. The tough guy personality everyone knew him for was just an act. It wasn't him. Without Juvia, he fell apart. She kept him grounded. He paced around some more, stopping every time he passed the mirror. Who was this man he was seeing?

He hadn't slept well at all. The only time he managed to sleep was when exhaustion took over. He was fumbling at work. He would forget to check ID's and wouldn't even check who he was letting into Phantom. For all he knows, a twelve year old could have gotten in that night and he would have been liable.

He needed his best friend back.

Gajeel pulled his hair. When had he become so dependent. He hadn't even realized. He was so used to having Juvia around that now he wasn't sure how to function without her. The only time he didn't rely on anyone was when-

Suddenly he stopped. The only time he had managed to function without Juvia was when he was functioning with cocaine. He looked at his phone. He still had Porla's number saved. Should he? He had managed to stay clean for so long. Should he really ruin it now?

'What do you have left? You lost the two people you care about in the same day.'

Gajeel pressed call.

.

Gray couldn't believe they had sex. No matter how mad he was at her, he could never resist her. "Do you think I overreacted?" He asked Jellal. Who better to ask than the psychologist? He shook his head, "I wouldn't say you over reacted. On the contrary, your reaction showed just how much a man you really are. However, I do think you need to see it from Juvia's side." Gray sat up from the couch, raising an eyebrow at Jellal, "Excuse me?"

"See it from her side. She was a scared, allegedly pregnant fifteen year old. She just found out her boyfriend and the father of her child was a cocaine addict, and had betrayed her trust by trying to sell it to her recovering addict best friend. Can you not imagine how scary that must have been for her? Did you really think she thought you would be there for her?" Gray eyed Jellal warily. He wondered if he should have divulged all the details to Jellal. As if reading his mind, Jellal held his hands in the air, "Patient confidentiality. My lips are sealed." Gray nodded and closed his eyes, "When you say it like that, I understand it better. I was too busy focusing on my own anger that I wasn't thinking of her. I don't know how I would have reacted if she told me then. I want to say I wouldn't run, but I don't know. I was a kid. It sucks but I understand. But I already said things I can't take back. How would we even go about fixing it?"

"I'm trying to arrange all of us to meet up and just talk about everything. No more secrets. It's the only way to truly get past it without it ever blowing up like this ever again." Gray shuddered, "That sounds like it would go terribly wrong." Jellal shrugged, "It's highly likely, but we're all adults now. We need to start acting like it." Gray nodded. He was right. And there was still a secret he was hiding from everyone. A secret that needed to come to light.

.

Although Juvia hated Oak Town, being back in her roots for the past few days eased her mind. She finally allowed Cana to convince her to not make a permanent move until the semester was over. She said to only stay for the week and see how she fared. It made her realize Magnolia wasn't really all that bad. Oak Town was a terrible place to live in, especially when the whole town was ruled by Porla. Even though she was on the other side of the town, his name still brought shivers to the people around him. It almost made her want to head back to Magnolia right then and there.

All she had to do was get through the semester, then if she really wanted to, she could transfer to another college in a different city. The way the semester was going, she never saw the others anyway. Jellal apparently worked with her, but she never saw him due to their conflicting schedules. Only for parties, which were easily skippable, just like Gajeel had said.

Gajeel.

She wondered if he was mad at her. She left without a word. She didn't want to put him in the position of choosing her or Levy. They came back for second chances and even though she had screwed hers up, he didn't have to follow in her footsteps. He would forgive her. She was going to go back today and apologize. Life would go back to the way it was. Everything would be fine.

Her phone rang and she beamed at the name. "Sting! Hi!"

"Wow you sound happy? What gives?" Juvia shrugged, "The past came back up again and ruined my life." Sting thought for a moment, "And now you're a deranged sociopath?" Juvia giggled, "No. I realized that Magnolia isn't the city for me. I'm finishing the semester and then leaving." Sting sighed, "Do you really think running is the solution?"

"I'm not running. Right now, yes I am since I just packed up and left to Oak Town. Again. But me leaving Magnolia later on won't be running. It'll be a mature, planned trip to start a new life."

"You're in Oak Town too? Is something going on there?"

"No, I'm here for clarity. Who else is here?"

"Gajeel." Juvia almost dropped her phone. "I was just on the phone with Toto and he said he ran into Gajeel." What was he doing here? Looking for her? But he would know where to find her in this town and she hadn't seen him. Unless…

"Oh My God. I should have never left him."

"Left him? You two didn't go together?" Sting's eyes widened as he came to the same realization as Juvia. "Juvs. You need to find him. Fast!"

.

Gray opened the door as he heard someone knocking like the world was going to end. "What the-" He started but couldn't finish as Levy flew on top of him. "Where is Gajeel?" She frantically screamed. Gray looked at her like she had three heads, "You do realize he doesn't live here, right?" Levy looked at him with tears in her eyes, "He's not answering any of my calls and it's been days." Gray sighed, "I can ask Juvia." He looked at his phone, wondering if Juvia would even answer. "Or maybe Cana."

"Hello?" He heard the familiar bored tone. "Hey Cana. Juvia with you?" Cana sighed, "Not since last week. I've been back in Crocus." Gray sighed, "Text me her address. We're looking for Gajeel too." There was silence on the other end for a while, "She's… not in Magnolia. She decided to leave for a while. I'm sorry Gray, I promised her I wouldn't tell any of you where she went." Gray froze.

"I don't know about Gajeel, but Juvia isn't coming back to Magnolia for a while. He should be there though."

Why? "The semester?"

"I don't really know." A lie, but Cana decided to leave Gray in the dark. "I couldn't stay with her too long. I had to go back to Crocus. Anyway, I have to go. I'll give Gajeel a call. He'll never ignore me." Levy winced. She knew Cana didn't mean it that way, but she felt a jab at her heart. "Text me the update. Bye."

"Why the hell would she go so suddenly?" Jellal asked.

"Same as always. She's adept at running from her problems." Gray groaned. "I'm going after her." Jellal held his shoulder, keeping him in place, "No, you're not." Gray shrugged him off. Jellal narrowed his eyes, "Okay fine. Where are you going?"

"After her." He repeated. "And where is that?" Gray stopped in his tracks. Where was she? He wouldn't even know where to look. Would she go back to Oak Town or to a completely new city? A city where no one could judge her for her mistakes? Where would he even begin?

"I don't think she'll be gone long. Especially since she left Gajeel here. We'll wait a few days. If she's not back still, then we'll take action. She left because she needed space. Give it to her."

Gray sighed in defeat. She always ran away. But could he blame her? All he did was push her away.

Gray looked at his as he got a text alert. 'No response from Gajeel.'

Now came the next problem.

.

Porla's mansion was huge, which was no surprise as he was the richest man in Oak Town. Other than running many legal and illegal businesses outside the city, he also had connections to the mafia. He was a dangerous man. Juvia was risking her life coming in here, but she wouldn't think twice about it. It was her fault Gajeel was here. Why was she always so brash? She only thought about herself. She abandoned Gajeel, knowing he couldn't be alone. But what happened to Levy? She thought they were going strong. Why didn't he tell her if they weren't?

"Porla's bitch is back? Magnolia men couldn't compare, huh?" Juvia rolled her eyes. Everyone thought she was his whore. She would chop his dick off if he ever tried, but that still didn't stop him from letting people believe it. She was fourteen when they left here. These men were disgusting.

"Where is he?"

"Damn, you've gotten sexy." He said, coming closer to her. She eyed the knife at his belt and waited for him to come closer. Just as his hand outstretched to grope her, she leaned forward to grab his knife and chopped his fingers off. It was a gruesome sight, but in Oak Town, if someone didn't end up dead, it wasn't considered a real fight. To a true street fighter, this would be child's play. As the other man screamed and bled on the floor, she turned to the one who was speaking so vulgarly to her, "You seem to like sexualizing young women." She stated, eyeing the apparent bulge, "Shall I chop it off?" The man flinched, looking between Juvia and his injured friend. "Fuck this shit, I'm out."

Juvia smirked as he ran and turned to other one, "When you're ready to leave, I suggest doing so. And don't tell anyone I'm here. I never forget a face." He turned to her and nodded. Juvia was almost disappointed. Back when her and Gajeel filled these positions, they would have never lost so easily. Porla needed to step up his bodyguard game.

She kicked the door open and wasn't surprised to see Porla already waiting for her, two much stronger looking men by her side. That explained it all. They were just the warm up. "Where those other two an attempt to tire me out? You should give me more credit. You were my trainer after all."

"Nothing more than a test." Juvia noticed a black lump on the floor and realized that was an unconscious Gajeel. Porla smirked, "I knew you were coming as soon as he arrived. It's a good thing, I've missed you so much." He was in front of her in seconds, "You've become so much more beautiful." He whispered, running his fingers down her arm. "And you're still the same amount of disgusting." Juvia spat. "I'm taking him with me. I'll take down you, dumb, and dumber if I have too."

His two men stepped forward. They had guns, she realized. Her and her big mouth. Fighting with fists didn't work well against guns. He waved one away, who left promptly. The other lay his gun down and held his fists up. "Beat him, and you can take him home."

Juvia grinned. She could feel her Oak Town persona rise back from the ashes. She held her fists up. Something no one in Magnolia knew about her? She was a boxer. "I'm going to kick your ass."

The man seemed to be a well trained fighter. After all, he was working under Porla. But Porla had taught her everything he knew. She rushed forward and punched him right in the stomach. He may have been big, but she was fast. As the wind was knocked out of him, she used her other hand to punch him in the same spot. She stood back up and punched his jaw, then roundhouse kicked his other side. The man spat out blood.

Porla cheered, "I've never seen you do that before."

Juvia shrugged as she went forward and landed another kick to arm, making him stumble. The man finally regained his focus and attempted a punch but Juvia easily dodged it and landed another kick to his temple. She could see he could no longer focus on her. She sighed, this was all a waste of time. She tripped him and elbow dropped his stomach, and he was finally knocked out.

Juvia sighed, "What a disappointment. You really hire weak men now – What the hell?" She struggled to get out of the strong grip that she knew to be Porla. "This is what I really wanted." He groaned, as he held her fast with one arm and groped her breast with the other hand. "You disgusting freak!" Juvia screamed, "Get off me!" She elbowed him, making his stumble backwards. She turned around ready to fight him, but her side was met with a burning pain and the floor. She saw an iron pipe in his hand and knew he must have hit her. He dropped it and stepped forward to her. "You were too young back then. But now you're twenty and sexier than ever." He dropped on top of her and held her hands above her head. She struggled, but couldn't over power him. "Gray." She whimpered. She wanted him to save her, but he didn't know where she was. "Gajeel!" She screamed, "Wake up!" Porla chuckled, "I beat him up good. He deserved it. He came here for drugs and then flushed them down the toilet. Good inventory wasted." Juvia sighed in relief. He resisted. She was so proud of him.

She regained her focus when she heard the tearing of clothing, and realized he was tearing her shirt. Juvia froze. He really was going to rape her. "No!" She struggled. "Stop!" She tried to wiggle away but he held her down. "I've waited years for this." He breathed into her ear. Juvia shuddered in disgust.

She felt tears coming but she didn't want him to see her cry. He laughed, "Cry. It'll turn me on more."

"Fuck you."

He grabbed her neck and was about to smash his lips onto hers, but suddenly he stopped. There was a loud bang and the grip on her neck loosened. Before Juvia could understand what was happening, Porla slowly fell to the side and behind him stood a very angry Gajeel.

Juvia jumped up and embraced her savior, not afraid to let her tears flow. "He was going to-" Gajeel lightly shoved her and held the pipe above his head, "I'm going to kill him." Juvia smiled and couldn't wait to watch but she heard footsteps coming their way. "Gajeel. His men are coming!"

"I want to kill this fucker!"

"We can't enjoy his death if we die too! There'll come another time. For now, we need to go!"

.

After a long five hour drive, Jellal and Gray made it to Oak Town. Although Jellal said it was unlikely, Gray didn't know where else to search. We could get information at the very least, he had said, then find out where to go next. Despite all the arguing, Gray couldn't just wait for Juvia to come back and there was a chance they could find out more about Gajeel's location. "I'm glad Ultear left me her car." Gray sighed in relief. "Anyway, we're at Porla's mansion, according to the people here. I guess we could try asking him? They knew him when they were younger."

"Um Gray. Look." Gray followed the direction Jellal was pointing to and saw Gajeel and Juvia frantically running out of the mansion. "Start the car." Jellal immediately complied, "Hey!" Gray shouted. "Over here!" Juvia only hesitated for a second, before grabbing Gajeel and practically jumping into the car. "We need to leave! Back to Magnolia!" Gray swiftly got into the car as well. Jellal sped off, not wasting a beat. Gray turned around, seeing Juvia's ripped clothes and Gajeel's fresh wounds. Him and Juvia made eye contact. He raised an eyebrow at her, but she only shook her head.

"Later." Was all she said before she dozed off, with Gajeel already dozing off on her shoulder. Gray turned back around. Someone had tried to hurt Juvia all because he scared her off. Again.

"You think this Porla guy did this?" Jellal whispered.

"No matter who it was, I'll kill all of them."

.

No matter how hard she tried to fall asleep, she couldn't calm herself down. She looked between Gray and Jellal. They came to save her. Gray knew to come here, even though she only spoke badly of her hometown. Despite everything, he still knew her. She couldn't stop the small smile forming on her lips. She would have to thank him later but right now, she wanted to forget.

Jose Porla almost raped her. She stared at her reflection in the window. No matter how strong she thought she was, she couldn't overpower him. She looked at Gajeel, fast asleep on her shoulder. She couldn't stop thinking about what would have happened. What if he hadn't woken up in time? She shuddered. She didn't want to think about it. She was saved, and that was all that mattered.

Juvia knew one thing. This was not the last time she would see him. Next time, she would be ready. Next time, she wouldn't face him alone.

'I'm done running.'

 **.**

 **I've recently played Breath of the Wild and it's making me want to write something. Where's my Zelink people? (Another reason why I wasn't writing. I was ADDICTED (sorry!))**

 **Also, I got a review last chapter saying the Gruvia scene felt like rape and I was a little upset. That was not how I saw it or intended it to seem like, and I'm so sorry that it did. It was meant to happen for the wrong reasons, but neither objected because they're still so in love with each other but they have too many problems. He was hurt and maybe rougher than what would be considered normal, but that scene was supposed to be both of them pouring their feelings out in a way that didn't require words. I'm sorry if you don't like that explanation, but that's how I thought of it when I wrote it. It was not intended to be rape and I'm sorry you saw it that way.**

 **Anyway, I hope you all liked this chapter and leave a review of what you're thinking!**


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